Belgian hospital suspends doctor after ‘Jewish’ medical diagnosis causes uproar

A doctor in Belgium has been suspended from his position after a diagnosis he allegedly wrote said that a nine-year-old patient’s problem was that she was Jewish.

A letter written last week by the hospital’s director said that the medical file, which went viral on social media, was not intended as an anti-Jewish slur, and that the doctor was merely transcribing the words of the patient’s mother.

However, further investigations into the doctor’s social media accounts revealed that he had posted dozens of antisemitic messages, leaving the hospital with no choice but to suspend him, the hospital said.

According to the initial report, after a young girl arrived at the AZ Zeno Campus Hospital in Knokke-Heist with pain in her arm after a fall, the doctor wrote that her condition seemed normal, reports said.

However, in the description of the current problem, the doctor described the pain in her left forearm, and added, “No allergy. Jewish (Israeli).”

A screenshot of the diagnosis was shared on social media, angering many, who saw the “diagnosis” as antisemitic.

Some said the mention smacked of “racial antisemitism” theories from the past century that considered Jews to be a separate and inferior race.

In Belgium, a doctor examined a sick young girl.

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In the “medical issues” section, right after allergies, the antisemitic doctor wrote: “Jewish.”

What’s next, refusing to treat Jews?

This is beyond unacceptable. But after this summer, sadly, nothing surprises me anymore. pic.twitter.com/7acuxeEumZ

— Hen Mazzig (@HenMazzig) August 31, 2025

A letter later written by AZ Zeno director Emanuel Van Hoecke said the whole thing was a misunderstanding. The note merely records that the patient’s mother mentioned her Jewish faith and a trip to Israel, which the doctor dutifully transcribed, the letter said. It also said that Arkawazy was not the doctor who wrote the diagnosis in the first place.

In the meantime, however, an investigation into Arkawazy’s social media accounts by pro-Israel activists found that he had previously posted dozens of antisemitic messages on social media, including a vile montage depicting Orthodox Jews as vampires ready to devour a sleeping baby.

These were reported to the hospital, which has since suspended him as it conducts an investigation into his conduct, according to a letter the hospital shared with The Times of Israel.

???????????????? SIGNALEMENT : Le Dr. Qasim Arkawazy, radiologue d’origine irakienne ???????? exerçant à l’hôpital AZ Zeno dans la station balnéaire de Knokke-Heist, relaie des dizaines de contenus antisémites, islamistes chiites et antisionistes.

???? Parmi ces publications : un montage ignoble… pic.twitter.com/IDTBYM5j1e

— SwordOfSalomon (@SwordOfSalomon) August 31, 2025

“The hospital had been informed of several posts previously shared by the doctor mentioned on his private account that could be considered hate speech,” the letter said. “AZ Zeno has the fullest comprehension of the many indignant reactions and would like to stress that there is absolutely no place for discrimination within the hospital.”

The Jewish Information and Documentation Center (JID), a Belgian organization dedicated to fighting antisemitism, applauded the decision to suspend Arkawazy.

“This decision sends a powerful message: Antisemitism will not be tolerated, especially not in healthcare, where trust, neutrality, and respect for every patient are indispensable,” JID vice president Ralph Pais said in a statement. “This incident once again demonstrates that antisemitism is not an abstract concept, but leads to dangerous and unacceptable discrimination — even in situations of medical emergency.”

The European Jewish Congress called the “Jewish” diagnosis “dehumanizing, discriminatory and utterly unacceptable.”

“This is not just unethical, it’s dangerous,” the EJC said on X. “No parent should fear that their child’s care might be compromised because of their Jewish identity. We call on Belgian authorities to take immediate disciplinary action and make clear: Antisemitism has no place in healthcare — or anywhere.”

Since Hamas launched its attack against Israel on October 7, there have been a number of high-profile cases of antisemitism in the medical field.

In August, a Muslim nurse in the Netherlands was investigated for threatening on social media to kill Israeli patients. And earlier this year, in Australia, two nurses in a Sydney hospital were suspended from work for threatening on TikTok to kill Israeli patients and saying they would refuse to treat them.