Pocan, Quigley Lead 41 Members Calling for the Release of Detained Palestinian Physicians and Healthcare Workers
WASHINGTON D.C. –
U.S. Representatives Mark Pocan (WI-02) and Mike Quigley (IL-05) led a letter, signed by 41 Members of Congress, sent yesterday to Secretary of State Marco Rubio calling on him to engage with his Israeli counterparts to ensure the release of Palestinian physicians and other healthcare workers who are arbitrarily held in Israeli detention without formal charges or due process.
Since October 2023, Israeli forces have arrested hundreds of essential Palestinian healthcare workers, placing even further strain on Gaza’s already devastated healthcare system and severely undermining access to care in the West Bank. Dozens of medical workers, including physicians, remain detained despite facing no formal charges.
“We write to express our significant concerns regarding the Israeli government’s continued detention of Palestinian medical professionals, and to urge you to work with your Israeli counterparts to secure the release of medical professionals who remain in Israeli detention without due process, including physicians from Gaza and the West Bank,” the Members wrote.
“Since the start of the war in Gaza, Israel has arrested hundreds of essential Palestinian health care workers, placing even further strain on Gaza’s already devastated healthcare system and severely undermining access to care in the West Bank,” the Members continued. “Dozens of medical workers still remain detained despite facing no formal charges, and have reportedly been subjected to deplorable conditions in detention, including severe medical neglect, starvation, and abuse amounting to torture. Their prolonged and arbitrary detention appears to represent part of a pattern by the Israeli government to further dismantle the healthcare systems in Gaza and the West Bank and create conditions that are directly incompatible with rebuilding and recovery.”
“Among those detained are 14 Palestinian physicians from Gaza, including pediatricians, orthopedic specialists, and surgeons, who have been held in detention without charge for more than a year,” the Members added. “One of those doctors, Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, has been held for over 18 months without any formal charges or trial, and is reportedly in such dire medical condition that his lawyer warned he is approaching the point of near-death. Like Dr. Abu Safiya, none of the other 13 doctors have been formally charged or allowed due process, and face similar dire conditions.”
“In recent months, we have also seen a growing number of assaults and arrests of Palestinian healthcare workers in the West Bank, including the arrest of Dr. Mazen Al-Rantisi in June,” the Members went on to say. “Known in his community as the “doctor of the poor,” he is also being held in detention despite facing no formal charges and is subject to similar inhumane conditions. These medical professionals provide essential healthcare services to their communities in the West Bank, and these increased attacks threaten their own health and safety, the health of their patients, and further underscore the broader Israeli effort to undermine the healthcare system in the West Bank, which is reportedly now on the brink of collapse.”
“Medical professionals are entitled to protections under International Humanitarian Law, and it is critical that the United States emphasizes the importance of protecting medical personnel from arbitrary detention without due process. We strongly urge you to work with your Israeli counterparts to secure immediate release from detention for these physicians, as well as the release of other medical professionals still in detention without due process,” the Members concluded.
A digital copy of the full letter can be found here.
The letter is endorsed by J Street, New Jewish Narrative, A New Policy, Friends Committee on National Legislation, PeaceMed, and Amnesty International
The full list of signers (41): Pocan, Mark; Quigley, Mike; Carson, André; Casar, Greg; Cisneros, Gilbert; Crockett, Jasmine; Davis, Danny; Dean, Madeleine; DeLauro, Rosa; Deluzio, Christopher; DeSaulnier, Mark; Dexter, Maxine; Doggett, Lloyd; Escobar, Veronica; Frost, Maxwell; Garamendi, John; García, Jesús; Garcia, Sylvia; Grijalva, Adelita; Hoyle, Val; Huffman, Jared; Jackson, Jonathan; Jayapal, Pramila; Kamlager-Dove, Sydney; Kelly, Robin; Khanna, Ro; Lee, Summer; Lynch, Stephen; McCollum, Betty; McGovern, James; Mejia, Analilia; Min, Dave; Moore, Gwen; Norton, Eleanor; Omar, Ilhan; Ramirez, Delia; Simon, Lateefah; Tlaib, Rashida; Tran, Derek; Waters, Maxine; Watson Coleman, Bonnie
NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.
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