Adnan Al-Bursh ( ar, عدنان البرش, ʿAdnān al-Bursh; 17 September 1974 19 April 2024) was a Palestinian orthopedic surgeon and the head of orthopedics at the

Gaza Strip The Gaza Strip (;The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p.761 "Gaza Strip /'gɑːzə/ a strip of territory under the control of the Palestinian National Authority and Hamas, on the SE Mediterranean coast including the town of Gaza.. ...

's largest medical facility, Al-Shifa Hospital. He died after having been reportedly tortured in Israeli prison after four months of detention during the

Israel–Hamas war An armed conflict between Israel and Hamas-led Palestinian militant groups has been taking place chiefly in and around the Gaza Strip since 7 October 2023. On that day, Palestinian militant groups launched 2023 Hamas attack on Israel, a surp ...

. Adnan Al-Bursh was born in 1974 in Jabalia, the Israeli-occupied

, and received his early education there before traveling to

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

to study medicine. Al-Bursh was married and had five children. He also served as an adviser to the

Palestine national football team The Palestine national football team ( ar, منتخب فلسطين لكرة القدم), controlled by the Palestinian Football Association, represents Palestine in association football. The squad is governed by the Asian Football Confederation ...

. In November 2023, during the Israeli invasion of Gaza, Al-Bursh was stranded in the besieged Al-Shifa Hospital. Israeli forces later requested hospital staff move south, but Al-Bursh refused to comply and instead moved north to assist at the

Indonesia Hospital Indonesia Hospital ( ar, المستشفى الإندونيسي, translit=al-Mustashfá al-Indūnīsī, id, Rumah Sakit Indonesia) was a hospital located in Bait Lahia, North Gaza Governorate, Gaza Strip, Palestine. Facilities The hospital ha ...

, where he was arrested by the Israeli military the following month. He was held at Israel's

Ofer Prison Ofer Prison ( he, כלא עופר, ''Kele Ofer''), formerly officially known as Incarceration Facility 385 (), is an Israeli incarceration facility ( ''mitkan kli'a'', abbr. ''Matak'') located in the West Bank, between Ramallah/ Beituniya and Giv' ...

in the Israeli-occupied

West Bank The West Bank ( ar, الضفة الغربية, translit=aḍ-Ḍiffah al-Ġarbiyyah; he, הגדה המערבית, translit=HaGadah HaMaʽaravit, also referred to by some Israelis as ) is a landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...

. Palestinian authorities and advocacy groups have attributed his death to torture and mistreatment in custody, with the OHCHR confirming his body showed signs of torture. His death has been highlighted as part of the "systematic targeting process against physicians and the health care system in Gaza" by Israel.

Early life and career

Adnan Al-Bursh was born in 1974 in Jabalia, the Israeli-occupied

, and received his early education there before traveling to

to study medicine. In his career, he was a prominent Palestinian orthopedic surgeon who served as the head of orthopedics at Al-Shifa Hospital, Gaza's largest medical facility. Al-Bursh was married and had five children. He served as an adviser to the

. In November 2023, during the Israeli invasion of Gaza, Al-Bursh was stranded in the besieged Al-Shifa Hospital for 10 days with his nephew. Israeli forces later asked them to move south, but Al-Bursh refused to comply and instead moved north to assist at the

. Al-Bursh's wife and six children also refused to move south and sought refuge at one UNRWA school in the northern area of the strip. Al-Bursh was injured when he was at work in the operating room of the Indonesian Hospital, when the Israeli military attacked the hospital. Following a truce, he relocated again to

Al-Awda Hospital Al-Awda Hospital is a hospital in the Gaza Strip, Palestine. The hospital provides basic medical care, with an emergency room and obstetric services for women in the northern Gaza Strip. The hospital has the largest delivery room in the district ...

, also in northern Gaza.

Arrest and death

Israeli forces arrested the 50-year-old doctor in December 2023 alongside 10 other workers while temporarily working at

in northern Gaza. According to Israeli security sources, Al-Bursh was detained for national-security reasons;

IDF IDF or idf may refer to: Defence forces * Irish Defence Forces * Israel Defense Forces *Iceland Defense Force, of the US Armed Forces, 1951-2006 * Indian Defence Force, a part-time force, 1917 Organizations * Israeli Diving Federation * Interac ...

sources reported that he was suspected of terrorism. Four months later, on 19 April 2024, the Israeli prison service confirmed Al-Bursh's death in custody at

, without disclosing the cause of his death. Palestinian authorities and advocacy groups have attributed his death to torture or mistreatment in custody. Released prisoners told Al-Bursh's family that he was being subjected to torture, and a UN statement on his death confirmed his dead body showed signs of torture. His body was kept in Israeli custody, and the fate of the other detained medical workers remains uncertain. In May 2024, the family of Al-Bursh had a lawyer from

The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital of ...

look into his death and help facilitate the return of his body. On 15 May, Al-Bursh's wife and

Physicians for Human Rights–Israel Physicians for Human Rights–Israel (PHR-I or PHR-IL; ) is a non-governmental, non-profit, human rights organization based in Jaffa. Physicians for Human Rights–Israel was founded in 1988 with the goal of promoting "a just society where the ...

submitted a request for an investigation and autopsy to the Jerusalem

Magistrate Court The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judici ...

. Days later, Israel agreed to perform an autopsy, with a doctor representing the family present.

Reactions

The Prisoners' Affairs Authority and the Palestinian Prisoners Club labelled Al-Bursh's death an "assassination" and a part of the "systematic targeting process against physicians and the health care system in Gaza." The

Palestinian Ministry of Health The Health Minister of the State of Palestine ( Abbreviation: MOH) is Dr. Mai al-Kaila.Francesca Albanese, UN Special Rapporteur for human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories, expressed her extreme alarm at the news of Al-Bursh's death and called for better protections.

Tlaleng Mofokeng Tlaleng Mofokeng is a South African physician who is the United Nations' United Nations special rapporteur, Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health. She campaigns for universal health access and HIV care. She was named one of the BBC's ''BBC 10 ...

, United Nations' Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health, described herself as "horrified" by his death, lamenting that Al-Bursh "died for trying to protect the rights to life and health of his patients", and called for an international investigation on the matter. His death was highlighted as a further example of the ongoing challenges and risks faced by healthcare workers in Gaza, with hundreds killed, injured or arrested. The Ministry of Health stated that 492 Palestinian doctors had been killed by Israel in the conflict. The international community and human rights organizations have repeatedly called for an end to attacks on medical personnel and the protection of Palestinians under Israeli occupation. Al-Bursh's nephew, Mohammad Al-Bursh, described him as a "cheerful" and "loved" figure who dedicated his life to his profession, often working nonstop during the height of the conflict in Gaza. Colleagues praised him as a "rare individual" and the "safety valve" for orthopedic departments across Gaza's hospitals, often working tirelessly even during the height of conflicts in the region.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bursh, Adnan Al- 1974 births 2024 deaths 21st-century Palestinian physicians Civilians killed in the Israel–Hamas war Orthopedic surgeons Palestinian deaths in police custody in Israel Palestinian people who died in prison custody Palestinian surgeons People from Jabalia Torture victims Violations of medical neutrality during the Israel–Hamas war 21st-century surgeons Political prisoners in Israel