Israel released the director of Gaza’s main hospital on Monday after holding him for seven months without charge or trial over allegations the facility had been used as a Hamas command center. He said he and other detainees were held under harsh conditions and tortured.
The decision to release Mohammed Abu Selmia, apparently taken in order to free up space in overcrowded detention centers, sparked uproar from across the political spectrum, with government ministers and opposition leaders saying he should have remained behind bars.
They reiterated allegations that he had played a role in Hamas’ alleged use of Shifa Hospital, which Israeli forces have raided twice since the start of the nearly nine-month war with Hamas. Abu Selmia and other health officials have repeatedly denied those accusations, and that fact that he was released without charge or trial was likely to raise further questions about them.
I’m honestly at the point where I would be more surprised if Israel didn’t abuse him in custody. That’s not to downplay the seriousness of this - only to highlight the consistency of the depravity of Israeli security forces when dealing with Palestinians.
Israel’s claims at this point are similar to Russia’s - whenever I hear them, I generally assume the opposite is true. You only get so many lies before people start seeing a pattern.