The image is now famous: A man in a white coat walks alone through the rubble toward two tanks, his shoulders squared, steps resolute. The man, Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, is a pediatrician and neonatologist from Jabalia who has served as the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital for almost a year. The scene is of a disappearance. On December 27, 2024, the Israeli Occupation Forces stormed Kamal Adwan and arrested Abu Safiya along with hundreds of others, then set the hospital ablaze. At the time of printing, there are no functioning hospitals in northern Gaza.
The invasion followed 63 days of siege. On October 25, the IOF raided the hospital, detaining 44 hospital staff members. The same day, Abu Safiya’s teenage son Ibrahim was martyred in an Israeli drone strike while sheltering inside the hospital. Abu Safiya led the funeral prayers in the hospital’s courtyard, and, as cameras rolled, accused the Occupation of targeting his son in retaliation for his refusal to abandon his patients.
Over the next two months, besieged and cut off from food and oxygen supplies, Abu Safiya and a small team were left to care for the wounded under the incessant fire of Zionist drones, tanks, and guns. It was the third time Kamal Adwan had been besieged and attacked since October 7, 2023.
What follows is a series of communiqués sent by Abu Safiya to members of Doctors Against Genocide and Healthcare Workers for Palestine, either by text or by voice note, during the siege. Some were sent in English, while others have been translated from the original Arabic. Several have been lightly edited for length and clarity. All communiqués are published with the permission of their recipients.
We share these messages to honor Dr. Abu Safiya and all those who, through fourteen months of escalated genocide, stood fast and refused to abandon their sick and their wounded.
October 28
Most of the specialized medical staff have been arrested, and only one other doctor and I remain. We both specialize in children’s medicine. We are forced to provide surgical services without any capabilities. There are large numbers of wounded who need treatment intervention. Otherwise, we will lose a wounded person every hour.
To the world, we need ambulances and delegations of surgical doctors. There are no ambulances in the north. In the absence of medical supplies and specialized medical staff, we will lose more wounded people. They can’t be left to walk until they die in the streets.
November 7
The situation is still very difficult, and we are still trapped inside the hospital. No ambulances in the north because they are unable to reach us. Yesterday, and the day before, buildings were bombed. Kamal Adwan was targeted directly and randomly, and crews were injured.
November 9
We urgently call for the provision of essential supplies and ambulance services as well as the lifting of the siege on northern Gaza. We are witnessing cases of malnutrition and famine in the north.
Northern Gaza is enduring genocidal war, and we are, quite frankly, suffering in silence due to the crimes being inflicted upon us.
Our healthcare system and the rights of our people are under severe threat, and we are in desperate need of medical support. There is an ongoing crisis in northern Gaza, characterized by a systematic assault on our healthcare systems.
Tragically, we are receiving distressing calls about individuals trapped under rubble, and we are powerless to assist them. They are trapped in dire circumstances, and today we mourn their loss as martyrs. This reality is unbearable.
November 11
I am speaking to you from the heart of the siege imposed on northern Gaza. The area is still devastated. We need ambulances to transport the injured, trapped under the rubble of their homes, from disaster sites.
We have received distress calls from multiple people. The next day, their voices were gone, and they were counted among the dead, with their homes becoming their graves. This scene is repeated daily.
We cannot provide even a single meal to the patients, making their wounds take longer to heal. Nor can we offer a meal to the healthcare workers who work around the clock. We urgently call for immediate intervention by the international medical community. We demand a humanitarian corridor.
November 19
Sad thing I noticed or maybe realized today: I was looking around for something to eat. I found some guy who sells falafel sandwiches. I noticed that he wrapped the sandwich with a book page, and I realized it was a medical text. I asked him about it; he showed me a pile of brand new books. I asked him if I could buy one, but he didn’t understand why someone would be interested in buying a book from a falafel guy. He questioned me, but I insisted on buying one. He then gave it to me for free. It is the one known copy of the medical textbook that teaches us how to treat children who have suffered blast injuries from bombs.
There is scarcity in everything: plastic bags and paper wraps. So people burnt books from Al-Shifa Hospital’s medical library to cook or because they were cold, trapped inside the hospital. Same for Nasser hospital. Same for Al-Azhar University and Islamic University’s libraries and remnants of books after their bombardment.
November 20
Yesterday I received a distress call from the al-Kahlout family after their home was targeted, and sadly, we are unable to assist them. Whoever could get out survived while, tragically, the others have become martyrs.
Yesterday, 17 children came to the emergency room displaying signs of malnutrition. Additionally, an elderly man died yesterday due to severe dehydration.
The situation has become increasingly catastrophic, and, regrettably, there is no movement or even promises from any international entity to open a humanitarian corridor through which medical supplies, surgical teams, food for children, infant formula, and therapeutic milk may enter. This would enable us to treat malnutrition cases and provide necessary ambulance services.
November 22
9:49 a.m.: The same scene repeats itself and worsens. A plane suddenly dropped bombs on the emergency reception entrance without prior warning. Four medical staff workers were injured. Transfer staff was targeted while urgently CT-scanning the injured. Two nurses are in the ICU. The hospital courtyard, where the electricity generators are located, was bombed, causing significant damage to the generators’ functionality. The oxygen station nearby was also hit, disrupting oxygen supply to the hospital. Eighty-five injured patients. Eight in the ICU. Fourteen in the pediatric ward. Four neonates in NICU.
This is not the first time Kamal Adwan was bombed amidst the harsh and suffocating siege on northern Gaza and its healthcare system. Every time the hospital is targeted, casualties and destruction of infrastructure are left behind.
We demand the release of our medical teams detained during the recent incursion on Kamal Adwan Hospital.
11:07 p.m.: This attack is considered the second one in 24 hours. At least three bombs were dropped. One at the entrance to the reception and emergency wing. Doctors Nihad and Abu Omar al-Hawajri from Kamal Adwan hospital were injured. Abu Omar died inside while attending. Dr. Saeed Judah was also hit. The intention here is clear. There is clear and deliberate targeting of the health system in the northern Gaza Strip. We don’t know what they want from a hospital that provides humanitarian and health services to the needy.
On November 23, Dr. Abu Safiya was wounded in an Israeli quadcopter attack while leaving the operating room. The injury to his upper thigh was extensive, with vascular damage and significant blood loss.
That same night, the Occupation targeted his daughter. She too was seriously injured, but survived.
November 24
This will not stop us. I was injured at my workplace, and that is an honor. My blood is no more precious than that of my colleagues or the people we serve. I will return to my patients as soon as I recover.
December 1
Yesterday five houses were bombed. More than 200 people inside, including children and women. Only three survived. The rest are trapped under the rubble. They were calling for help, but anyone who tried to assist was also bombed. Sadly, the cries for help have vanished, and they were killed. This is a truly heartbreaking event that brings tears to my eyes. When I imagine this scene happening to my own family — what would I have done?
This scene has become a daily reality, and no one is held accountable. Yesterday around 200 people were martyred. Sadly we have become mere numbers to the world.
December 8
Indiscriminate shelling is preventing us from repairing the oxygen, electricity, and water networks. Bombardment and gunfire have not ceased. Planes are dropping bombs around the clock. A short while ago, the martyrdom of Dr. Saeed Jouda was announced.
December 14
It was another difficult night. The use of exploding robots is new to us, and they are getting closer to the hospital every day. Three explosive robots detonated yesterday, breaking the doors and windows of patient rooms. The sound was terrifying. This has become a daily routine.
December 18
Yesterday marked one of the most challenging, one of the darkest, bloodiest days at Kamal Adwan Hospital. Fighter jets targeted the hospital and buildings in the vicinity. One of these buildings housed civilians seeking shelter, and people went out engulfed in flames, some tragically losing their lives. Eight martyrs. Children trapped beneath the charred debris.
The situation became dire when, with no warning, bulldozers and tanks entered the area, firing directly at the hospital from all directions. The ICU on the west wing was directly hit. We managed to miraculously evacuate oxygen cylinders. The isolation wing was completely burnt by flames. Praise Allah that we were able to use blankets and our hands to put out flames, as we’ve exhausted all of our fire extinguishers. The scene inside the ICU resembled a war zone.
Ours is the only ICU in the north. Gunfire has not ceased around the hospital. There is unprecedented sniping and shelling activity. Our hospital appears to be under constant threat, and its walls are riddled with bullets and shells, making it resemble a military target. It is a small and simple hospital providing humanitarian services.
Nine days after this last message from Dr. Abu Safiya, two members of Doctors Against Genocide and Healthcare Workers for Palestine received the following message from Waleed Al Buddi, a nurse at Kamal Adwan Hospital.
December 27
We are inside the hospital. We have been asked to go down into the courtyard. We wish everyone safety, and if we are fated to, we will return to you and speak to you in better times. Forgive us for our shortcomings.
The same day, December 27, Zionist soldiers kidnapped Abu Safiya along with other members of the staff of Kamal Adwan. Some reports say there were dozens of abductions. Other reports say hundreds.
On January 3, the Occupation admitted detaining Abu Safiya, contradicting an earlier statement in which the IOF claimed to be unaware of his case. The occupation further claimed that Abu Safiya is suspected of being a “terrorist” and of “holding a rank” in Hamas. On January 4, the Occupation extended his so-called “detention” until February 13.
Abu Safiya’s whereabouts were unknown until recently-released prisoners from Sde Teiman confirmed his arrival at the Zionist black site in the Naqab (“Negev”) desert. Soon thereafter, the Palestinian human rights monitor Al-Mezan reported that he had been transferred to Ofer Prison in the West Bank.
On January 7, Abu Safiya’s mother died of a heart attack.