Tasnim – Israeli forces have arbitrarily detained and tortured Palestinian healthcare workers in Gaza, subjecting them to humiliation and abuse, according to a report by Physicians for Human Rights Israel (PHRI). The rights group said more than 250 medical personnel had been arrested, with over 150 still in custody.
Dr. Khaled Alserr, a 33-year-old surgeon, recalled the abuse he endured after being arrested at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis in March last year. “They forced us to make the sound of a donkey,” he said. “It was designed to humiliate us.”
PHRI’s report, Torture of Medical Workers in Israel, documents the arbitrary detention and mistreatment of healthcare personnel in Gaza. The group said detained medics were beaten, threatened, and interrogated about Hamas operations in violation of the Geneva Conventions, which protect medical workers in conflict zones.
Dr. Alserr described being stripped in public, tied with plastic restraints, and interrogated three times, including by members of Israel’s Shin Bet security agency. “They asked about my identity, my job, and what I was doing on October 7th. Where was I? Who did I treat?” he said.
Among the 24 healthcare workers interviewed for the report, all stated they were never formally charged or presented with evidence. Instead, they faced threats, beatings, and psychological abuse. One medic said Israeli forces told him, “We will cut off your fingers because you are a dentist.” Another said military dogs were set upon detainees as soldiers laughed, forcing them to bark like dogs.
Some detainees were sexually assaulted or subjected to stress positions for extended periods, PHRI reported. Dr. Alserr said he was taken with two teenage prisoners to an undisclosed location, where soldiers kicked and beat them. “At around 4 a.m., I heard one of them say in Arabic: ‘These three are to be hanged.’ I thought it was the end,” he said.
Dr. Alserr was held without charge for more than six months, including three incommunicado under Israel’s Unlawful Combatants Law. He was released in late September.
PHRI’s Najji Abbas said the arrests and abuse of healthcare workers violated international law. “It’s illegal because these arrests are clearly a fishing mission, and healthcare workers are a protected category under international humanitarian law,” he said.
Human Rights Watch (HRW) and the United Nations human rights office (OHCHR) have also documented allegations of torture and mistreatment of Gaza’s healthcare workers. HRW has called for an investigation by the International Criminal Court.
The UN report noted that Israel’s detention of healthcare workers contributed to the collapse of Gaza’s medical system amid an ongoing blockade. “Their status as healthcare workers didn’t stop the abuse,” said HRW lawyer Milena Ansari.
Dr. Alserr, speaking from a hospital ward in Gaza, said the trauma remains. “I know I will not heal completely. I just hide it with work and by keeping busy,” he said.
