Israeli forces arrest Palestinian 'doctor of the poor'

[Jilly_in_VA]

Israeli forces on Sunday arrested a prominent 71-year-old Palestinian physician known as the “doctor of the poor” in a pre-dawn raid on his home in the occupied West Bank, prompting widespread condemnation.

Dr Mazen Al-Rantisi, a physician widely known for providing care to low-income Palestinians, was arrested before dawn at his home in the al-Tira neighbourhood of Ramallah.

He was later taken to the police station in the Israeli settlement of Ma’ale Adumim, where he is believed to be under interrogation by the Special Investigations Unit. Israeli authorities have not said why he was detained or where he is currently being held.

According to the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, the arrest is believed to be connected to Al-Rantisi’s position as chair of the Union of Health Work Committees, a Palestinian non-profit founded in 1985 that operates clinics serving thousands of patients each year, particularly in rural communities with limited access to healthcare.

The organisation was declared an “unlawful association” by the Israeli military in 2020 under emergency regulations dating back to the British Mandate for Palestine. Two years later, Israeli forces shut its headquarters in Al-Bireh. Despite those measures, the group remains legally registered with the Palestinian Authority’s interior ministry.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jun/25/israeli-forces-arrest-palestinian-doctor-of-the-poor

Fucking hell. This is untenable.

[Sneederbunk]

1. At least they did not kill him. . . . yet.

[questionseverything]

2. They will torture him first

[AloeVera]

3. In the most inhuman and perverted ways.

All while laughing.

[Jilly_in_VA]

7. Well there is that

but they'll probably torture him

[Dawson Leery]

4. It is time for international sanctions to shut Isreal down.

[3_Limes]

5. Buisiness as usual.

Why are we friendly with this country?

[malaise]

6. Effin' evil

That is all

[Takket]

8. Helping Palestinians live is a crime to the current Israeli government

[mike_c]

9. gawd, I'm so ashamed this country supports Israel

They've gone from apartheid to genocide, and no longer seem to care what the rest of the world thinks. They thumb their noses at international law and the UN. WE enable all of this. We provide the money and most of the arms used to commit genocide against the Palestinians and territorial aggression in Gaza, the West Bank, and Lebanon. We give them international cover. We prop up their regime. We all share the shame of Israeli genocide, because we support it financially, militarily, and politically.

[orthoclad]

10. Terrorists with nukes

pull the plug. stop enabling them.

As a cross-reference from today: Israeli spyware was used to steal private info from protestors' phones.
Public Records Show FBI Secretly Extracted Data From ICE Protesters' Phones
https://democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=21329299

and the IDF trains US police forces in tactics.

[Nanjeanne]

11. More from Haaretz

In response to a Haaretz query regarding the police's decision not to summon the doctor for questioning but instead to arrest him at night, authorities said: "We do not provide details regarding the existence or non-existence of investigations, and this does not confirm or deny their existence."

In Israeli civilian law, authorities are obligated to bring an Israeli suspect before a judge within 24 hours of arrest. Military law, however, permits holding a Palestinian in detention for four days until their first appearance before a judge. However, since October 7, 2023, the army has been making widespread use of the "combat arrest" clause in the Security Provisions Order, which allows the authorities to bring a Palestinian suspect before a military judge only after eight days.

Dr. Rantisi became known in the Ramallah area for making accurate diagnoses, his friendly demeanor, and operating on the principle that every patient is entitled to medical treatment: he typically charges 30 shekels from patients who can afford it and provides free treatment to those who cannot. In many cases, Rantisi ensures his patients receive medications before they are covered by medical insurance. Often, Rantisi returns home with dishes prepared for him by patients instead of monetary payment.

In the past year, the number of people seeking treatment at Rantisi's clinic has grown, along with the number of patients unable to pay for care. Israel's seizure of Palestinian Authority revenues led the Palestinian Health Ministry to implement drastic cuts to the working hours of medical teams and clinics. One of Rantisi's friends told Haaretz that in his unpaid role as chairperson of the union, he is responsible for the professional activities of the permanent and mobile clinics throughout otherwise underserved villages in the West Bank.