Three Israel Defense Forces soldiers were sentenced for violent crimes against a Palestinian without any substantial basis or reasoning. Two soldiers were convicted of abusing a Palestinian, together with other soldiers, and another soldier was convicted of exceeding his authority to the point of endangering life or health.
The three soldiers were also convicted of the crime of obstructing legal proceedings together. The indictments against the soldiers were filed after an extensive investigation by the investigations unit of the military police. It should be noted that while these incidents are rare, the IDF persistently takes them extremely seriously and almost always ends up sending the soldiers involved to military prison, stripping them of rank as well as a sizeable stipend afforded to soldiers upon release.
According to the indictments, the three soldiers who were patrolling the seamline near the Palestinian Authority city of Qalqilya, together with another soldier, put a Palestinian resident in a military jeep and drove with him to a distant place. During and after the trip, violence was used against the Palestinian man, after which the soldiers left the victim of their crimes in the remote place to which he was taken. The soldiers hid the details of the incident from their commanders, in an attempt to prevent the opening of a military intelligence investigation, and coordinated their versions in relation to its details with the aim of disrupting the investigation.
IDF soldiers jailed for naked firing range practice https://t.co/kOeaAtVLwE
ā Lillie Lehman (@LillieLehman3) May 22, 2023
It was hot. Any thoughts? š
The military court respected the plea agreements reached between the parties and sentenced the two soldiers who were convicted of abuse to a sentence of 60 days in prison with no early release, along with a reduction to the rank of private. Military Prisons are generally speaking considered even worse than ordinary Israeli prisons in terms of the treatment of prisoners. Israel does not tolerate insubordination from their soldiers, especially when innocent people are harmed as a result.
The soldier who was convicted of the offense of exceeding his authority to the point of endangering life or health was sentenced to 40 days in prison, along with a suspended prison sentence and a reduction to the rank of private. In the plea agreements, various evidentiary considerations were taken into account which reflect the part of each of the soldiers in the actions.
Live update: 3 IDF soldiers handed jail sentences for beating Palestinian man in West Bank https://t.co/b6dXrx7imM
ā TOI ALERTS (@TOIAlerts) May 24, 2023
The case of the fourth soldier, who is accused of the crimes of assault, abuse under aggravated circumstances and threats, and other crimes, is still pending before the military court and his detention has been extended until May 30, 2023. At this stage, the identifying details of all the soldiers are prohibited from publication, in accordance with the decision of the military court.
