THE LAWYER for a prominent Palestinian doctor who was kidnapped by Israeli forces 18 months ago said his client has been abused in captivity and is in critical condition, according to the human rights group representing him.

Hussam Abu Safiya, who served as director of the Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, became the face of health workers struggling to treat patients during the Israeli invasion.

He led the facility through an 85-day siege by the Israeli military, releasing videos in which he pleaded for help before he was abducted in December 2024. He has not been charged.

The Israeli military said Mr Abu Safiya, 53, was being investigated on suspicion of co-operating with or working for Hamas. Staff and international aid groups that worked with him deny the claims.

Physicians for Human Rights — Israel and Mr Abu Safiya’s lawyer, Nasser Odeh, said he appeared extremely weak and struggled to sit upright during a visit on July 2.

Mr Odeh said his client had recent head injuries around his eyes, ears and neck and experienced difficulty breathing.

Mr Odeh and Physicians for Human Rights-Israel said they have petitioned to have Mr Abu Safiya transferred to another facility.

Mr Abu Safiya faced physical and psychological abuse and was kept in solitary confinement for extended periods, Mr Odeh said following an appearance before Israel’s Supreme Court last month challenging his continued detention without charge.

Mr Abu Safiya appeared briefly by video during that hearing, looking pale and gaunt and with lash-like marks on both arms.

Israel’s Prison Service called the allegations “false and entirely without factual basis.”

Elsewhere in the war-torn Middle East, tens of thousands of people attended the funeral prayers for Iran’s assassinated leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in Tehran yesterday.

A huge crowd chanted “Death to America” and “Death to Israel,” as they called for revenge over the surprise US and Israeli attack on February 28 that killed the 86-year-old supreme leader and other officials.

“Why is the biggest bastard in the world still alive?” said Mohammad Rasouli, a poet who emceed the event before the prayers.

“I came here to shout and seek revenge,” said Gholamreza Sabooni, a 29-year-old man who works in a grocery. “They killed our imam, we should kill their leader, Trump.”