WHO chief urges Israel to release Kamal Adwan Hospital director

The World Health Organization (WHO) chief on Monday urged Israel to release the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in Gaza.

"Kamal Adwan Hospital in North Gaza remains completely out of function and we have received no updates on the safety and wellbeing of its director Dr Hussam Abu Safiya since his detention on 27 December," Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus wrote on X.

"We continue to urge Israel to release him. We repeat: attacks on hospitals and health professionals must end. People in Gaza need access to health care," Tedros added, repeating his call for a cease-fire.

Abu Safiya was detained by Israeli forces along with others during a raid on the hospital on Dec. 27.

The Israeli army has continued a genocidal war on Gaza that has killed more than 45,800 people, mostly women and children, since a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023, despite a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire.

In November, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its deadly war on the enclave.