Published on 6/13/2026
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Last update: 22:21 (Mecca time)
Today, Saturday, European capitals witnessed demonstrations demanding the release of Palestinian prisoners, especially doctor Hossam Abu Safiya, and an end to the ongoing Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip despite the validity of the ceasefire agreement.
In the “Fontaine des Innocents” square in the French capital, Paris, the Europlastin organization organized a demonstration in which they raised the flags of Palestine and Lebanon, during which they chanted the slogans “Palestine is Arab from the sea to the river,” and another demanding an end to the Israeli aggression.
The British capital, London, also witnessed a protest in front of the Israeli embassy, in which participants demanded the release of prisoners from Israeli prisons, especially the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital, Hossam Abu Safiya, who has been detained since late 2024.
The participants raised pictures of Abu Safiya, and chanted slogans: “Freedom for Palestine… Raise your hands from Palestine… Freedom for Dr. Hossam now… Freedom for all doctors now… Freedom for all nurses now… Freedom for all prisoners now.”
One of the participants said in a speech, “Maybe the Israelis will stop throwing false accusations at him and give him food if they feel that the world is watching them.” While another speaker said that he was proud to be a Christian Palestinian demonstrating for Palestine alongside other Muslim and Jewish brothers.
Racist Zionism
He added, “What will happen after what happened over the past years? The law adopted by the United Nations in the 1970s considers Zionism a form of racism. However, when we say that this movement that began a long time ago is destroying peace, they accuse us of terrorism.”
The spokesman stressed that Israel, which is on the blacklist, does not listen to all voices that criticize its behavior, especially with regard to health care for Palestinian prisoners.
In the German capital, Berlin, demonstrators organized a massive march in which they raised Palestinian flags and slogans, “The land is ours,” and demanded freedom for the prisoners.
These demonstrations come amid increasing international criticism facing Israel due to its poor treatment of Palestinian prisoners and its approval of a law authorizing their execution for crimes determined by the Tel Aviv government, a law that many international organizations have described as racist and unjust.
The case of Dr. Hossam Abu Safiya, who was arrested by the occupation forces in December 2024, while he was at work, was charged with terrorism-related charges.
A few days ago, Abu Safiya sparked widespread dissatisfaction after he appeared via video in one of the trial sessions bearing traces of starvation and torture, to which his lawyers had previously confirmed that he had been systematically exposed.
A few days ago, the Israeli Prison Service transferred the Palestinian doctor from the Negev detention center to solitary confinement in the Nafha Desert Prison amid harsh detention conditions, depriving him of the necessary treatment and his most basic rights guaranteed in accordance with international law.
Sanctions are not enough
Earlier this month, a UN report criticized the “horrific” and systematic settler violence in the occupied West Bank, which prompted six European countries to impose sanctions on settlements and leaders of settlement organizations, along with Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich.
These countries are France, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Norway, and Israel described them in a statement by its Foreign Ministry as working to “spread anti-Semitism.”
Last month, Paris prevented National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir from entering its territory after he published a video showing abuse of detained activists from the “Resilience Flotilla” seeking to deliver humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip.
But former member of the British Parliament, Claudia Webb, told Al Jazeera that these sanctions “are neither sufficient nor a deterrent because they do not affect people and do not affect the Israeli government,” and she considered them an attempt by the West to hide behind them so that it can support Israel as a state with money and weapons.
