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As Prisoners and Hostages Released, Advocates Decry Continued Detention of Palestinian Doctor Abu Safiya
"There cannot be peace without justice, human rights, and dignity of ALL," said a top United Nations rights advocate. "Palestinian lives matter."
Oct 13, 2025
As families on Monday celebrated the return of about 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and 20 living Israeli hostages after the two-year Israeli bombardment that has killed more than 67,000 people and left rubble across Gaza, advocates demanded the return of Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, who was captured nearly a year ago and has reportedly been imprisoned in a detention center known for torturing detainees.
Middle East Eye reported Monday morning that according to Israeli media reports, Abu Safiya was on a list of Palestinian prisoners who would be released only "if the number of those released is not completed."
"The government has approved the creation of a reserve list of five prisoners from Gaza, who will be released if changes are made," according to Israeli media reports.
Palestinian writer and poet Mosab Abu Toha noted that "if he and the others are approved, they would replace five other Palestinian hostages who were previously set for release."
Abu Safiya was seized by the Israel Defense Forces in December 2024 after the IDF raided Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahia, where he was the medical director.
The IDF claimed without evidence that Kamal Adwan Hospital was a Hamas command center; it was the last major functioning health facility in northern Gaza when it was attacked.
As the exchange of hostages and prisoners neared over the weekend, advocates including healthcare professionals demanded that Abu Safiya be included in the exchange.
"I am a family doctor and public health practitioner. I have studied the impacts of settler colonialism on health, locally and abroad. I am demanding for the immediate and unconditional release of Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya who is being held captive by the Israeli military for fulfilling his duty and calling to protect his patients," said Dr. Yipeng Ge. "I am calling for protection of hospitals, patients, and health workers in Gaza."
Abu Safiya is one of more than 9,600 Palestinians held in Israeli prisons, according to Israeli human rights group B'Tselem.
The prisoners being released on Monday include 1,700 Palestinians who were detained after Israel began its bombardment of Gaza in retaliation for a Hamas-led attack on October 7, 2023.
At least 154 Palestinian prisoners freed on Monday were forced into exile by Israel and deported to third countries.
On Saturday, the Council on American-Islamic Relations called on the Trump administration to "demand that Israel release Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya and all other kidnapped medical professionals."
Francesca Albanese, United Nations rapporteur on human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories, suggested that the international acceptance of the continued detention of Abu Safiya and thousands of people in Israeli prisons, many of whom have been held without charges and were detained as minors, "says a lot about [the] peace that lays ahead, for the Palestinians."
"There cannot be peace without justice, human rights, and dignity of ALL," said Albanese. "Palestinian lives matter."
The prisoner-hostage exchange is a major part of the first phase of the 20-point peace plan proposed by President Donald Trump, with the next phases yet to be negotiated.
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'Step Up and Speak Out': Chicago Pastors Lead the Charge Against ICE Detentions
"Silence is supporting this abuse of these members of God's family," one Chicago pastor told his congregants on Saturday.
Oct 12, 2025
As demonstrations against an immigration detention facility in Broadview, Illinois have ramped up in recent weeks, several local priests have joined in the protests to call attention to what they say are affronts to Christian teachings.
Father Larry Dowling, pastor at the St. Agatha Catholic Church in Chicago, wrote a lengthy Facebook post on Saturday in which he described his experience in trying to gain access to the Broadview Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility to offer communion services to detainees.
Dowling began his post by praising the work of the Maywood and Broadview Police Departments, as well as the Illinois State Police, who facilitated his and his congregants' procession to the ICE facility on Saturday.
He was far less complimentary, however, about the reception he got after arriving at the ICE facility.
"There were no ICE or federal representatives there," he explained. "When requesting to talk with a representative from Homeland Security and ICE, the state police reached out on our behalf to make the request over the phone. After a brief wait, the answer came back very clearly: No, you cannot bring a hint of compassion and prayer into this place!"
Dowling called this response outrageous, and he encouraged his followers to pray for "the children, for the mothers and fathers who are being treated inhumanely" at the ICE facility.
"Please step up and speak out," he concluded. "Silence is supporting this abuse of these members of God's family."
In an interview with NPR published on Sunday, Rev. Quincy Worthington of Highland Park Presbyterian Church explained why he has become more involved in the ICE facility protests over the past few weeks.
"What I've experienced is that some people feel that God has abandoned Broadview, and they're looking at signs of hope," he told NPR reporter Ayesha Rascoe. "Having a member of clergy there standing with them is a reminder that God stands with them as well."
Rascoe then asked him if he'd witnessed incidents of violence during the demonstrations at Broadview, and he mostly pointed the finger at ICE officials.
"What I've seen every time I've gone is ICE's response to the protests has continually escalated," he said. "At first, they would come out of the gates, shove people to the ground, push people out of the way in order to make room for vehicles to enter and exit the facility. Then it started turning into they would shoot pepper balls at us. And then tear gas started coming out, and then flash-bangs and rubber bullets."
Worthington emphasized that he hadn't seen any actions taken by the demonstrators that "would provoke this response."
Rev. David Black, pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of Chicago, has also recently been making headlines for participating in demonstrations at the ICE facility, and last week he filed a lawsuit alleging that the government was infringing upon his First Amendment rights by using excessive force in response to his peaceful protests.
"I extended my arms, palms outstretched toward the ICE officers, in a traditional Christian posture of prayer and blessing," he alleged in his complaint. "Without any warning, and without any order or request that I and others disperse, I was suddenly fired upon by ICE officers. In rapid fire, I was hit seven times on my arms, face, and torso with exploding pellets that contained some kind of chemical agent. It was clear to me that the officers were aiming for my head, which they struck twice."
Video of Black getting shot in the head by pepper balls at the Broadview ICE facility went viral last week, he told CNN host Erin Burnett that he could hear ICE agents laughing as they opened fire on him.
"It was deeply disturbing," he said. "We've gotten to witness a few things against these ICE agents operating in Broadview, and really what it has shown us is how disorganized they are and how poorly supervised and trained they are."
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'A Pretext to Take Over American Cities': JD Vance Sparks Alarm With Comments on Insurrection Act
"The guardrails are gone," warned Democratic political strategist David Axelrod.
Oct 12, 2025
Vice President JD Vance sparked alarm on Sunday when he said that President Donald Trump was considering invoking the Insurrection Act under the pretenses of combating violent crime in US cities.
During an interview on NBC's "Meet the Press," host Kristen Welker asked Vance if Trump was "seriously considering" invoking the Insurrection Act, which would allow him to use the US military to carry out law enforcement operations.
Vance responded by saying Trump is "looking at all his options," and added that he hasn't felt the need to invoke it for the time being.
Vance proceeded to justify invoking the Insurrection Act, which he said could be necessary to protect the work of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials.
"We have to remember why we're talking about this, Kristen," he said. "Because crime has gotten out of control in our cities, because ICE agents, the people enforcing our immigration laws, have faced a 1,000% increase in violent attacks against them. We have people right now who are going out there, who are doing the job the president asked them to do, who are enforcing our immigration laws, they're being assaulted."
Welker countered by noting that a judge in Illinois found last week that the ICE facility in Broadview, Illinois has remained entirely open and operational despite being the target of protesters in recent weeks.
She also informed Vance that crime has been coming down significantly in both Chicago and Portland, two US cities where Trump has tried to deploy National Guard forces.
"Kristen, crime is down in Chicago and Portland often because they're so overwhelmed at the local level, they're not even keeping their statistics properly," Vance replied, without providing any evidence to back up his claim.
WELKER: Are you seriously looking at invoking the Insurrection Act?
VANCE: The president is looking at all of his options, right now he hasn't felt he needed to. But we have to remember we are talking about this because crime has gotten out of control in our cities
WELKER:… pic.twitter.com/vBBPkUidPu
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) October 12, 2025
Vance's justifications for invoking the Insurrection Act on the grounds that he laid out drew alarmed reactions from many critics.
"This is a pretext to take over American cities by force," wrote CNN political commentator Karen Finney in a post on X.
Shannon Watts, the founder of anti-gun violence organization Moms Demand Action, linked Vance's comments to the current shutdown of the federal government and questioned whether the government deserved to be funded when its executive branch was threatening to unleash the military against its own citizens.
"Why should Democrats vote to open the government while this is still happening?" she asked.
Cornell William Brooks, a professor at the Harvard Kennedy School and former president of the NAACP, argued in a post on Bluesky that Vance's comments show that the Trump administration "insults your intelligence."
"The same administration that fired an economist for reporting statistics on the economy," he wrote, "is asking you to not believe lower statistics on crime, not see safer streets, and accept the National Guard in your front yard."
Democratic political strategist David Axelrod warned that the Trump administration seems genuinely eager to send troops into US cities.
"Believe them when they tell you what they're planning, folks," he wrote. "Trump wanted to use American troops against Americans in his first term, and was dissuaded by responsible civilian and military leaders. No more. The guardrails are gone."
Attorney George Conway, a former Republican who left the party over its embrace of Trump, responded to Vance's comments by posting a video of anti-ICE protesters in Chicago dancing in the streets to the classic Neil Diamond hit, "Sweet Caroline."
Asked by Kristen Welker on Meet the Press this morning whether the White House was seriously considering invoking the Insurrection Act, Vice President Vance said, "The president is looking at all his options." pic.twitter.com/GVKxXf2YmI
— George Conway 👊🇺🇸🔥 (@gtconway3d) October 12, 2025
Talk of invoking the Insurrection Act has ramped up in recent weeks, despite the fact that protests against ICE facilities in Illinois and Oregon have remained overwhelmingly peaceful and have featured impromptu dance parties carried out by people dressed in inflatable animal costumes.
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