An NHS junior doctor who vowed she ‘would never condemn’ the October 7 Hamas attacks arrived at her tribunal wearing a necklace with a distinctive gold charm showing the number ‘seven’.
Dr Rahmeh Aladwan, 31, is currently appearing for the second time in front of the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) to face accusations of antisemitism and creating social media posts littered with praise for terrorist organisation Hamas.
She was cleared last month of the same allegations after the MPTS ruled her opinions on social media did not amount to ‘bullying or harassment’.
Those posts included a description of the Royal Free Hospital in Hampstead, north London, as ‘a Jewish supremacy cesspit’, Israeli people as ‘worse than Nazis’ and the Holocaust as ‘a concept’.
She has also openly called for Jihad during a protest in London, where she praised armed Palestinian fighters as ‘heroes’ and said Israel should be ‘dismantled’.
The tribunal came just two days after Dr Aladwan was arrested at her home on suspicion of inciting racial hatred and malicious communication.
One of the charges, for which she remains on bail, relates to social media messages posted on October 7 ‘which demonstrated support for the Hamas attack on Israel’.
The trauma and orthopaedics doctor, who is of British-Palestinian heritage, turned up to the hearing in Manchester flanked by supporters and sporting the gold necklace, which has been seen previously on her social media.
An NHS junior doctor who vowed she ‘would never condemn’ the October 7 Hamas attacks has today arrived at her tribunal wearing a necklace with a distinctive gold charm showing the number ‘seven’
The gold number ‘seven’ charm was previously seen on social media posts by Dr Aladwan
In one particular post from Dr Aladwan’s account, an image shows the neck of a woman wearing the number 7 charm, alongside a second chain with a charm showing the map of Palestine and a third sporting a gold rectangular charm inset with a green stone. The caption reads: ‘Celebratory jewellery’
In one particular post from Dr Aladwan’s account, an image shows the neck of a woman wearing the same number 7 charm, alongside a second chain with a charm showing the map of Palestine and a third sporting a gold rectangular charm inset with a green stone.
The caption underneath the image states: ‘Celebratory jewellery’.
Dr Aladwan claimed in another post that Israel had been ‘humiliated’ by the 7 October Hamas attacks.
For today’s appearance, the beleaguered doctor could be seen in images wearing the number seven charm alongside a second gold charm inset with a green stone.
A panel at the MPTS interim orders tribunal were set to consider ‘concerns which have been received regarding Dr Aladwan’s fitness to practise’.
A statement on the MPTS website said: ‘In accordance with Section 41A of the Medical Act 1983, as amended, the tribunal will determine whether to impose an interim order of conditions on Dr Aladwan’s registration, to impose an interim order of suspension on Dr Aladwan’s registration or to make no order.’
Prior to the start of the hearing, Dr Aladwan posted on her socials that she was ‘being persecuted for speech’ and that the tribunal was an attempt by ‘Jewish supremacy’ to ‘destroy my career’.
She wrote: ‘In 12 hours @gmcuk will try to destroy my career and livelihood to please its masters in the ‘Israeli’ lobby. Let’s be clear: A British jewish or ‘israeli’ doctor could join the terrorist IOF, bomb hospitals and kill patients in Palestine – and keep their licence and freely treat British patients.
The trauma and orthopaedics doctor, who is of British-Palestinian heritage, turned up to the hearing in Manchester flanked by supporters
Prior to the start of the hearing, Dr Aladwan posted on her socials that she was ‘being persecuted for speech’ and that the tribunal was an attempt by ‘Jewish supremacy’ to ‘destroy my career’
‘I’m being persecuted for speech. They would be protected for murder.
‘This is Jewish supremacy. This is Britain.’
As proceedings began, Dr Aladwan was accused of ‘doubling down’ on antisemitism and supporting terrorism days after her arrest.
In legal arguments, Kevin Saunders, counsel for the doctor, called for proceedings to be stayed due to an ‘abuse of process’ by the General Medical Council (GMC), saying she ‘would not have a fair hearing’.
He said the GMC was attempting to re-litigate matters than had already been decided on at an Interim Orders Tribunal (IOT) hearing on September 25.
‘It’s a brazen attempt to re-litigate these matters before a tribunal until the the GMC get the results it wants,’ he said.
Mr Saunders accused the GMC of making the re-referral after bowing to ‘pressure’ and a legal threat from the Campaign Against Against Antisemitism (CAA).
He also took aim at Health Secretary Wes Streeting, who strongly disagreed with the original tribunal decision, prompting him to say he had no faith in the medical regulator.
Today’s tribunal comes just days after police officers swooped on Dr Aladwan’s home address in South Gloucestershire, and arrested her on suspicion of inciting racial hatred and malicious communication
Mr Saunders said it ‘ill-behoves’ Mr Streeting to ‘seek to undermine the rule of law and the determination of an objective independent tribunal’.
‘It’s a perversion of procedure and an attempt to re-litigate until the GMC and those placing pressure on them achieve the result they desire,’ he added
‘The GMC has approached this case in an over-zealous nature that is devoid of objectivity, as you would desire.’
But Emma Gilsenan, counsel for the GMC, said it had received ‘substantial information’ since the September hearing that ‘takes on a new tone’.
It brought into question public confidence in the doctor and her profession, Ms GIlsenan said, and she denied any ‘abuse of process’ and ‘external pressure’ being the reason for the re-referral.
Ms GIlsenen said there had been a ‘continuation or doubling down of concerning conduct’ by the doctor and her recent social media posts were ‘racist and anti-Semitic’ and showed ‘enthusiastic support for proscribed terrorist groups.’
At her original tribunal held in September, which addressed similar complaints, Dr Aladwan was not suspended despite the medical tribunal hearing arguments that Jewish patients would not feel safe under her care.
The panel ruled that it did not believe the complaints against her were ‘sufficient to establish that there may be a real risk to patients’.
Dr Aladwan has come under investigation over several ‘dangerous’ social media posts littered with praise for terrorist organisation Hamas and previously said she would ‘never condemn’ the October 7 attack
But Health Secretary Wes Streeting said afterwards that ‘sickening comments’ had no place in the NHS ‘and action needs to be taken to root the evil of racism out’, adding he would overhaul the way medical regulators investigate cases of antisemitism.
Mr Streeting later wrote on X: ‘The racist language of ‘Jewish supremacy’ reflects the values of Nazis, not the NHS.’
In a further development, the GMC then announced the case had been referred back to the MPTS.
A spokesperson said at the time: ‘The GMC will make a referral where it believes an interim order is necessary to protect the public or public confidence in doctors during an investigation.’
The latest tribunal comes just days after police officers swooped on Dr Aladwan’s home address in South Gloucestershire, and arrested her on suspicion of inciting racial hatred and malicious communication.
Footage showed the dramatic moment during the early hours of Tuesday morning when officers placed the medic in handcuffs as the details of four charges were read out to her.
One of the charges related to a pro-Palestine protest held outside the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office in Whitehall on July 21, where Dr Aladwan was filmed saying she supported ‘armed resistance’ against Israel.
The Daily Mail revealed just days ago how the medic could be heard in footage of the protest calling Jihad ‘an honour’ and referred to Israel as ‘the terrorist entity’ that ‘must be dismantled’.
In similar comments later, she addressed the crowd and said: ‘For me, Palestine is the entirety of the map. Israel does not exist. And I can say that legally, I have my opinion.’
Referring to that incident, an officer read from the charge sheet: ‘You gave a speech which amounted to calls for the eradication of Israel and implied support for all those involved in armed resistance against Israel, including organizations such as Hamas.’
The other charges, which relate to Section 1 of the Malicious Communication Act and Section 127 of the Misuse of Public Communications Network, included social media posts that included ‘antisemitic tropes that could be considered grossly offensive in character’.
Dr Aladwan was also informed that she faces a charge relating to social media messages posted on October 7 ‘which demonstrated support for the Hamas attack on Israel, an attack which involved murder, rape and kidnap of Israeli citizens, all of which may be considered grossly offensive in character.’
As she was placed into custody, Dr Aladwan accused those arresting her of ‘just doing this for the Israeli Jewish lobby’.
She said: ‘We’re Palestinians and we’ve had our family members and friends murdered. Are you doing this for Israel?
‘This is what the UK does to their doctors, that are Palestinian, who have had family and friends murdered and who are anti genocide. That’s it, that’s all we advocate for, we’re just against murder.’
She added: ‘A doctor for seven years, I’ve never harmed anybody and never had any patient complaints. This is what the British state is doing for genocidal Israel.’
Dr Aladwan was released later on Tuesday and currently remains on bail.
Posting on X, she labelled her arrest a ‘co-ordinated act of political intimidation, designed to create a media spectacle and pressure the GMC and the MPTS.’
‘Our British institutions have become enforcement tools for a foreign, hostile agenda—for the ‘israeli’ jewish lobby—and the entire world can see it,’ she added.
‘Free Britain and Palestine from jewish supremacy (zionism).’
Among her many strongly-held views, which are openly posted onto her social media accounts, Dr Aladwan has previously claimed that ‘British Jewish children are taught that they are superior to non-Jews, that they have the right to colonise Palestine, and are groomed through birthright trips to become colonisers’.
On July 30, she claimed the Royal Free Hospital in north London, which serves a large Jewish community, was a ‘Jewish supremacy cesspit’.
And last month she sparked outrage after describing two gunmen involved in a fatal mass shooting in Jerusalem as ‘two Palestinian martyrs’.
The MPTS previously ruled no suspension was necessary – but Health Secretary Wes Streeting criticised the decision and the case was referred back with a new hearing today
Dr Aladwan made the comment to her more than 33,000 followers on X just hours after the frenzied attack took place and resulted in the deaths of six people, including a pregnant woman.
In other social media posts, Dr Aladwan described antisemitism and the Holocaust as ‘concepts’ used by Jewish people to ‘promote a narrative of victimhood’.
Following October 7 and Israel’s military response to Hamas, her posts have included pictures of masked men holding rifles alongside fire emojis and a photo of a masked toddler wearing the trademark fluorescent green Hamas headband.
She also shared a picture of a masked militant holding a large gun with the words: ‘A picture of AlQasem a day keeps the Zs [Zionists] locked away’, an apparent reference to the Al-Qassam brigade, the military wing of Hamas.
As today’s hearing came to an end, the tribunal rejected the application to stay proceedings because there was ‘no abuse of process’.
The hearing has now been adjourned to a future date to be decided.
