Knokke-Heist (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – AZ Zeno hospital in Knokke-Heist suspended a doctor after a report on a 9-year-old Jewish girl sparked outrage. The Jewish Information Centre demanded answers; investigation ongoing.
As VRT News reported, AZ Zeno hospital in Knokke-Heist has suspended a doctor after a medical report about a 9-year-old Jewish girl caused public outrage. The girl had fallen and injured her arm.
The report, under the heading “current problem,” described her pain and confirmed she had no allergies. It also mentioned that the child was Jewish. Her family saw this as offensive and argued that the report treated her religion as a problem. The Jewish Information and Documentation Centre asked the hospital to provide a full explanation.
What led AZ Zeno in Knokke-Heist to suspend a doctor over a 9-year-old Jewish girl’s report?
The hospital says the inclusion of the child’s religion was meant for medical purposes and not as a biased remark. AZ Zeno explained that knowing a patient’s religion can sometimes be relevant for treatment, including genetic factors or cultural considerations. Many social media comments focused on the radiologist for whom the report was prepared, who is of Iraqi descent.
AZ Zeno spokesperson Julie De Wale said that the radiologist did not write the report himself. The hospital described the situation as a misunderstanding but decided to suspend the doctor while it is investigated.
“We want to emphasise that religion or ethnic-cultural background never influences the quality of medical care, but in certain cases it can be medically relevant. In this case, the entry was included for medical reasons. We understand that the title combined with this entry could have been offensive, and we have since corrected this in the electronic patient record. The patient involved was contacted personally. The procedure was explained, and the situation was clarified,”
says Julie De Waele.
According to the Jewish Information and Documentation Centre, the doctor also posted “shocking antisemitic videos” on his social media accounts. Screenshots of these posts were immediately shared throughout social media and received attention from news media in Israel, growing public outrage.
“The hospital was made aware of several messages that the doctor had shared on his private account in the past that could be considered hateful,”
De Wale continued.
On Monday evening, Sep 1, 2025, the board of directors at AZ Zeno decided to suspend the doctor immediately. His profile was removed from the hospital’s website. The hospital stressed that it does not tolerate discrimination in any form and understands the strong public reaction. AZ Zeno launched both an internal and an external investigation to examine all aspects of the case thoroughly.
“The hospital was made aware of some messages that the doctor had shared on his private account in the past that could be considered hateful,”
De Wale continued.
Belgium has experienced similar incidents involving alleged antisemitism in medical settings. In Brussels in 2018, a doctor was suspended after a medical report about a Jewish patient included an unnecessary reference to the patient’s religion. The inclusion sparked criticism and public debate about the relevance of recording religious information in medical files.
