Gedera, Israel - Physicians Arrested for Illegal Experiments on Elderly Patients

Gedera, Israel - Four senior doctors at Kaplan Hospital in Rehovot and the Hartzfeld Geriatric Hospital in Gedera were arrested for carrying out hundreds of illegal experiments on elderly patients without their consent. Police searched the homes of all four suspects and confiscated documents.
The doctors are suspected of wrongful death through negligence, abuse of helpless victims, aggravated assault, fraud, violation of a statutory obligation and interference in an investigation.

A report by a Health Ministry inquiry committee, found that illegal and unethical experiments were conducted over several years, in a systematic manner, on thousands of elderly patients. At least one patient is suspected of having died as a direct result of one of the experiments. In addition, 12 patients died either during or shortly after one of the experiments, but the incident was not reported to the Health Ministry or investigated, in contravention of the law.

Some of the doctors submitted articles to medical journals in Israel and abroad on the basis of the experiments, which appear to have provided a foundation for their professional and academic advancement.