'Just bizarre': Doctor working in Gaza says police harassed family in London

A British-Palestinian surgeon working at the Al Shifa Hospital in Gaza has said that British counter-terrorism police "showed up at my house in the UK and harassed my family",

Dr. Ghassan Abu Sitta, a surgeon with Doctors Without Borders (MSF) who frequently speaks to the media regarding the dire conditions of medical facilities in the Palestinian enclave under heavy Israeli bombardment and blockade since the Oct. 7 paramilitary operation by Hamas, shared details of the incident on X on Monday.

“I will not stop speaking out on behalf of my patients and bearing witness to the crimes that are being committed,” he said.

Later in the night, the doctor appeared on BBC Newsnight, saying the police came to his London home, where his wife and three boys live.

“I think it’s a brutish attempt of harassment and silencing. I remain committed to speak on behalf of my patients and these families that are being destroyed. There are 50 families who’ve been wiped out of the civil registry, which means the grandparents, grandchildren and the parents are all killed.”

Abu-Sitta said his family already has enough to worry about, and the case would now be taken up by his lawyers.

“I need to find out why someone thought it was a good idea for them to show up at my house and ask my wife which part of the hospital I’m in, and why did I go, who paid for my ticket and which charity do I work for? At these difficult times, my family is seeing this bombing unfold knowing very well that I’m in the midst of it. So, to have them harassed in this way is just bizarre,” he said.

Speaking on the condition of the healthcare in Gaza, Abu Sitta said Al Shifa Hospital had a 700-bed capacity prior to the outbreak of the latest conflict, but the number of patients receiving treatment right now is at least double.

He added that 40 percent of the wounded are children, most of whom were taken out from rubble following the demolition of their homes.