SAFA- When Israel's genocide in Gaza began in October 2023, orthopedic surgeon Dr. Hamza Abu Sabha had an opportunity to leave the besieged enclave and pursue a scientific mission in Europe. Instead, he chose to remain at his post, believing his duty was to care for the growing number of wounded arriving at Gaza's hospitals.

Nearly three years later, he remains in Israeli detention.

As the war erupted on 7 October 2023, Abu Sabha had been preparing to travel to Belgium and Sweden for a medical training program. According to his family, he cancelled the trip without hesitation.

“He kept saying, ‘How can I leave people who need surgery and care?’ He believed his duty was here,” his mother recalled.

Abu Sabha continued working in orthopedic surgery and emergency care at Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis, one of Gaza's largest hospitals, where medical staff struggled to cope with an overwhelming influx of casualties.

That commitment came to an abrupt end on 16 February 2024, when Israeli forces raided the hospital and detained him while he was on duty, according to his family. Since then, he has remained in Israeli custody, one of dozens of Palestinian healthcare workers detained during Israel's military campaign in Gaza.

During his incarceration, Abu Sabha's health has significantly declined, according to family members.

They say he suffers from severe stomach pain, serious ear complications that nearly caused hearing loss, and a leg injury requiring surgery. They also report that he has lost around 40 kilograms, attributing the weight loss to inadequate nutrition, poor sleeping conditions, and limited access to medical care.

His family says they remain deeply concerned about his physical condition as his detention continues.

A Doctor Who Chose Service Over Safety

Before returning to Gaza, Abu Sabha spent nearly a decade studying medicine in Sudan, graduating with distinction before completing his specialist training and beginning his career as an orthopedic surgeon.

His mother said medicine was never simply a profession for him.

“He wasn't just a doctor. He saw medicine as a humanitarian mission.”

The war has devastated the family in multiple ways. Abu Sabha's brother, a laboratory specialist, was killed, while Israeli airstrikes destroyed both the family home and the doctor's own residence.

His wife, who is also a physician, gave birth to their only child under wartime conditions after the family had been displaced to western Khan Younis.

Their son, Mohammed, was just 40 days old when his father was arrested. Now more than two years old, he has grown up without ever knowing his father's presence.

“Whenever he sees a child with his father, he asks, ‘Where is mine?’” his grandmother said.

The family has appealed to the international community and human rights organizations to press for the release of detained Palestinian medical personnel.

“Doctors belong in operating rooms, not prisons,” his mother said. “He could have left and built a future abroad, but he chose to stay and help. Today, he is paying the price for that choice.”

The detention of medical professionals like Dr. Hamza Abu Sabha has further reduced the territory's already limited capacity to care for the sick and injured, underscoring the significant human cost borne by both healthcare workers and the communities they serve, as Gaza's healthcare system continues to struggle under the immense strain of the ongoing war.