The former top lawyer in the Israeli military has been arrested, as a political showdown deepens over the leaking of a video that allegedly shows severe abuse of a Palestinian detainee by Israeli soldiers.
Maj Gen Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi resigned as the Military Advocate General of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) last week, saying that she took full responsibility for the leak.
On Sunday, the story took a darker turn when she was reported as missing, with police mounting an hours-long search for her on a beach north of Tel Aviv.
She was subsequently found alive and well, police said, but was then taken into custody.
The fallout from the leaked video is intensifying by the day. Broadcast in August 2024 on an Israeli news channel, the footage shows reserve soldiers at the Sde Teiman military base in southern Israel taking aside a detainee, then surrounding him with riot shields to block visibility while he was allegedly beaten and stabbed in the rectum with a sharp object.
The detainee was subsequently treated for severe injuries. Five reservists were subsequently charged with aggravated abuse and causing serious bodily harm to the detainee. They have denied the charges and have not been named.
On Sunday, four of the reservists wore black balaclavas to hide their faces as they appeared at a news conference outside the Supreme Court in Jerusalem along with their lawyers, who demanded the dismissal of their trial. Adi Keidar, a lawyer from the right-wing legal aid organisation Honenu, claimed his clients were subject to a faulty, biased and completely cooked-up legal process.
Last week, a criminal investigation was launched into the leaking of the video. Gen Tomer-Yerushalmi was put on leave while the inquiry took place. On Friday, Defence Minister Israel Katz said she would not be allowed to return to her post.
Shortly after that, Gen Tomer-Yerushalmi resigned. In her resignation letter, she said she took full responsibility for any material that was released to the media from the unit.
I approved the release of material to the media in an attempt to counter false propaganda against the army's law enforcement authorities, she said. That is a reference to efforts by some right-wing political figures in Israel to claim that the allegations of severe abuse of the Palestinian detainee had been fabricated.
She added: It is our duty to investigate whenever there is reasonable suspicion of acts of violence against a detainee. After her resignation, Katz issued a fierce condemnation of her conduct, stating that anyone who spreads blood libels against IDF troops is unfit to wear the army's uniform.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu echoed his defence minister's words, describing the incident at Sde Teiman as perhaps the most severe public relations attack that the State of Israel has experienced since its establishment.
Hours later, the first reports began appearing in the Israeli media that Gen Tomer-Yerushalmi was missing, sparking fears that a political scandal had taken a turn towards tragedy. A massive search effort was launched, but she was found safe and in good health in the coastal area of Herzliya.
Overnight, a police spokesperson announced that two people had been arrested on suspicion of leaking and other serious criminal offences as part of an investigation, with media reports indicating that the pair included Gen Tomer-Yerushalmi.
The Sde Teiman incident has become a lightning rod for divisions between the left and right in Israel, with the release of the video seen by the left as evidence of systemic abuse, while the right regards it as a smear against the military. The video has triggered widespread discussions on military conduct and the treatment of detainees amidst an ongoing conflict.
