Day 461

(for Dr Abu Safiya)

They took him into their tank,
stripped him naked, beat him,
taunted him, screamed obscenities
at him.  Did they dishonor
his child, whom they had already
murdered?  Did they dishonor
his work?  Five of his colleagues
they killed in front of him:
One. Two. Three. Four. Five.
Doctors, nurses he had worked with
for months. Years.  Did they 
force him to watch?  Did they
taunt his friends as they were shooting?
They kicked him, beat him 
with cables, shouted at him
that he was no doctor
practicing medicine, no pediatrician,
but a militant, hider of militants.
Did they keep torturing him?  Are they
feeding him?  Are they trying
to strip him of more than his white
coat, his knowledge, his care
for his patients?