Israel arrests, tortures Gaza doctors while world watches

We were joined by Tarek Loubani, an emergency room physician based in Canada who has worked for years inside al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City. He discussed the abduction and arrest of some of his colleagues by Israeli forces over the last few weeks, including Dr. Muhammad Abu Salmiya, the director of al-Shifa hospital. Israel alleges that the doctors aided Palestinian resistance forces, notoriously claiming that Hamas’ “command center” was underneath the hospital complex as a pretext for the 18 November raid and siege of the medical center by Israeli forces. Zero evidence has been revealed to prove Israel’s claim. Tarek explained that the Israelis’ intention in taking and arresting these physicians, and subjecting them to physical and psychological torture, is meant to break the back of the healthcare system even further in Gaza. “I don’t think any of them really expected, especially under the flag of the ICRC [International Committee of the Red Cross], for them to be subject to that kind of arrest,” Tarek said. Abu Salmiya’s arrest, he said, “is a classic example of how the Israeli system works: it took him in with no charges, for no reason, it’s keeping him for a very specific purpose.” Even if Israel finds him not guilty of the charges against him, Tarek added, “he will have lost months of his life. You can watch the entire broadcast here: 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐄𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐜 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐟𝐚𝐝𝐚 Visit our website for more reporting: Facebook: Twitter: Instagram: Soundcloud: Spotify: Apple Podcasts: #TheElectronicIntifada #TheElectronicIntifadaPodcast