Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez drew criticism after calling on Israel to release Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, the former director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza. Abu Safiya has been held by Israeli authorities since a December 2024 raid on the hospital. In a post on X, the New York Democrat described Abu Safiya as a […]

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez drew criticism after calling on Israel to release Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, the former director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza. Abu Safiya has been held by Israeli authorities since a December 2024 raid on the hospital.

In a post on X, the New York Democrat described Abu Safiya as a pediatrician facing serious danger in Israeli custody.

“Israel must release pediatrician Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, who has been held without charge for 18 months and now faces an imminent threat to his life from torture,” Ocasio-Cortez wrote. “Israel must end the targeting of health workers and the inhumane treatment of Palestinians in arbitrary detention.”

Her statement focused on Abu Safiya’s medical work and the broader treatment of Palestinian health care workers. Critics, however, argued that it left out allegations concerning his possible ties to Hamas.

Reports cited by those critics claim that Abu Safiya held the rank of colonel in Hamas’s Military Medical Services. The Times of Israel reported in February that a photograph had resurfaced showing him alongside officers connected to the organization. NGO Monitor also published a side-by-side comparison of an image of Abu Safiya wearing medical scrubs and another photograph that it said showed him in a military setting.

Those reports have fueled arguments that Abu Safiya should not be described solely as a civilian doctor. Critics say Hamas’s medical services are connected to the organization’s military structure and allege that members of the unit were involved in the October 7, 2023, attack on Israel.

Abu Safiya had also developed an international public profile before his detention. He wrote two opinion articles for The New York Times, including one published shortly after the October 7 attack and another released in December 2024, not long before Israeli forces detained him.

Advertisement

Because reports about his alleged Hamas connections had circulated for several months, Ocasio-Cortez’s demand raised questions about whether she or her staff had reviewed the accusations before making the statement. Her critics have offered two interpretations: either she was unaware of the reports, or she knew about them and did not consider them sufficient to justify his continued detention.

Neither explanation can be established from her brief social media post alone. She did not address the allegations about Abu Safiya’s reported military rank, nor did she explain whether she disputed them. Her statement instead emphasized the absence of formal charges, the allegations of mistreatment and concerns about the treatment of Palestinian detainees.

The controversy reflects a broader difficulty surrounding hospitals and medical personnel in Gaza. Israeli officials have repeatedly accused Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad of operating from civilian facilities and placing members inside medical institutions. Palestinian officials and international organizations have warned that such claims should not be used to justify attacks on hospitals, the detention of medical workers or restrictions on health care.

Other reports have alleged that medical workers in Gaza also held positions in armed organizations. Jewish Breaking News reported that Ibrahim Al-Farra, a nurse at Nasser Hospital, served as a Hamas military commander. The outlet also identified Ahmed Majid Ahmed Salah as both a nurse and a commander in the Khan Younis Brigade. Another nurse, Ayman Suleiman Abu Tayr, was reportedly connected to Palestinian Islamic Jihad.

These allegations do not establish that every detained health care worker is involved with an armed group. They do show, however, why the identities and affiliations of individual detainees require careful investigation rather than assumptions based only on their civilian professions.

Ocasio-Cortez has every right to raise concerns about detention conditions, possible torture and the treatment of Palestinian medical workers. At the same time, public officials have a responsibility to address credible allegations that could complicate the cases they champion. By presenting Abu Safiya only as a pediatrician, she left unanswered questions about information that had already become central to the public debate over his detention.

The Western Journal