More than a year after paramedic Hatem Ismail Abdullatif Rayyan was seized from Kamal Adwan Hospital during an illegal raid by the Israeli Occupation Forces, his family has been informed that he has died at Ktzi’ot detention facility in the Negev. The family have received no further details regarding the circumstances of his death. The 59-year-old, who was described today as a beloved colleague ‘who never left his post’, was abducted from the hospital by the Israeli military on the December 27, 2024. Tens of other healthcare workers, patients, and displaced civilians – including Mr. Rayyan’s injured son – were abducted at the same time and also held in Israeli detention.

 

Mr. Rayan is the sixth Gazan healthcare worker known to have died or been killed in Israeli detention since October 7, 2023. The other five include two senior doctors, Dr Adnan Al-Bursh and Dr Iyad Al-Rantisi, another paramedic, Mr. Hamdan Annaba, senior nurse Dr Ziad Al-Dalou PhD, and a hospital administrator Mr. Mosaab Haniyeh. To date, none of the bereaved families have received the body of their loved one.

The news of Mr. Rayyan’s death has heightened the fears of the families of over 85 healthcare workers who are still detained. Speaking to Healthcare Workers Watch today, Mrs Israa Al-Qouqa, the wife of a detained orthopaedic surgeon Dr Murad Al-Qouqa, said:

‘I live every day in constant fear for my husband’s life and the news of paramedic Hatem’s martyrdom has only intensified my terror. If a paramedic, whose mission was to save lives and treat the sick, was martyred in prison, how can my fears not grow for my husband when he lacks healthcare and protection?’

 

She added:

‘During his detention, he has been subjected to brutal physical and psychological torture, severe beatings, and medical neglect that has resulted in serious head and eye injuries, in addition to a herniated disc and high blood pressure. I was informed by the lawyer that [he] is suffering from health problems and needs immediate treatment but the Israeli occupation is preventing the entry of medication for him.’

 

Her descriptions of the torture and medical neglect her husband is experiencing in Israeli detention tally with testimony collected by Healthcare Workers Watch[1] and multiple other organisations^{[2],[3],[4],[5]} who describe the systematic torture of Palestinians within Israeli prisons. Mrs Israa Al-Qouqa concluded with an urgent plea:

‘Today I speak as a wife and as a human being. The lives of the detainees are [Israel’s] responsibility, and their right to medical treatment and dignity is not a political demand, it is a human right that must be considered with compassion and humanity. I appeal to the media and international organizations to act immediately to secure the release of my husband, Dr Murad al-Qouqa, and his fellow detainees, whose only crime are being doctors who saved lives.’

 

Healthcare Workers Watch calls for the immediate and unconditional release of all the detained healthcare workers who are currently being held in life-threatening conditions by Israel.

 

[1] https://healthcareworkerswatch.org/publications/reports/the-killing-detention-and-torture-of-healthcare-workers-in-gaza/

[2] https://www.amnesty.org.uk/latest/israel-palestinians-gaza-held-secret-detention-describe-torture-new-testimonies/

[3] https://www.phr.org.il/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/6265_DetentionReport_Eng.pdf

[4] https://www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/documents/countries/opt/20240731-Thematic-report-Detention-context-Gaza-hostilities.pdf

[5] https://www.btselem.org/sites/default/files/publications/202408_welcome_to_hell_eng.pdf

 

Healthcare Workers Watch

February 13, 2026

 

For more information or to request contact with the families of detained Palestinian healthcare workers, contact Healthcare Workers Watch on info@healthcareworkerswatch.org

 

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