Israel frees Al Shifa Hospital director and 50 other Palestinian detainees

The move comes amid efforts to reduce overcrowding in detention facilities and international criticism.

About 50 Palestinian prisoners arrested during the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine were released on Monday, including the director of Gaza's largest hospital, Israeli sources confirmed.

An Israeli security official, speaking anonymously to Xinhua, stated that the prisoners were released from various Israeli facilities, including the military detention camp of Sde Teiman in the south, where many Palestinians arrested during the ongoing conflict were held.

The official noted that the release was part of an effort to reduce the number of detainees in Sde Teiman, which is running out of space.

Mohammed Abu Selmia, head of the Al Shifa Hospital, was among those released on Monday. He was detained by Israeli forces in November 2023 while traveling south from Gaza City following an Israeli military raid on the hospital.

In video footage widely circulated on social networks, Abu Selmia is seen near a Red Crescent vehicle and being warmly welcomed upon his arrival in Gaza.

"The prisoners are enduring very difficult conditions, including a lack of food and water and physical humiliation," he said in the video.

Abu Selmia also called for the release of all Palestinian prisoners due to the harsh detention conditions, stating that several Palestinian medical staff members died during detention due to torture and denial of basic medical care.

Israel conducted raids on the Al Shifa hospital twice, in November 2023 and April, claiming that the hospital had served as the headquarters of Hamas. The raids drew widespread criticism from the international community.

Abu Selmia's release has sparked an uproar in Israel. Internal Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, a far-right leader in charge of prisons, castigated the Shin Bet, Israel's internal security service, for approving the release and called for the dismissal of the Shin Bet chief.

Opposition Leader Yair Lapid also criticized the government over the release of Abu Selmia.

"The news this morning and the chaos in the government ... is a direct continuation of the recklessness and dysfunction of the Israeli government, which is causing damage to the security of Israel's citizens," Lapid accused.

The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a statement, saying that the prisoners' release followed an ongoing Supreme Court hearing in which human rights groups are challenging the harsh incarceration conditions.