Israel’s Legal Chief Arrested for Leaking Video of Palestinian Prisoner Abuse, While Soldiers Remain Free and Supported

Original article: Castigan la filtración, no la violación de soldados israelíes a preso palestino: detienen a exabogada principal del ejército por video del abuso

A scandal has erupted in Israel after the leak of a video documenting torture and sexual abuse of a Palestinian prisoner by soldiers was punished more severely than the acts of violence themselves.

The former Military Advocate General of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi, was arrested on suspicion of multiple offenses related to the dissemination of the material, while the soldiers accused of the assault walk free and receive public defense from ministers and parliamentarians.

Arrested and Defamed for Leaking the Video

In August 2024, Channel 12 of Israel released footage showing reservist soldiers from the Sde Teiman military base beating and sexually assaulting a Palestinian prisoner.

Following the video’s release, which sparked media chaos and reignited criticism of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, held responsible for the genocide in Gaza that has claimed nearly 70,000 Palestinian lives, the Israeli military announced an investigation—not against the soldiers who committed the rape, but against those who leaked the footage.

The investigation specifically focused on determining whether officials from the military procurator’s office had collaborated with the leak to Channel 12.

Last Wednesday, Tomer-Yerushalmi was suspended from her position as military attorney general, and two days later, she submitted her resignation letter, acknowledging that she had authorized the video’s publication and taking «full responsibility for any material disseminated to the media from within the unit.»

In her letter, she noted that a campaign of incitement against her had reached its peak following the decision to investigate the soldiers at Sde Teiman.

«This campaign continues to this day and causes deep and grave damage to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), its image, and the resilience of IDF soldiers and commanders,» she wrote.

«There are things that cannot be done even against the most egregious detainees (…) the unit (legal) officers have suffered repeated personal attacks, severe insults, and even real threats. All this for defending the rule of law in the IDF, alongside the commanders and by their side,» she asserted.

For his part, Defense Minister Israel Katz declared that he would take «all necessary sanctions against her,» including demotion, while National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir described the legal counsel’s actions as «criminal behavior under a legal pretext» and called for the appointment of a special prosecutor to investigate the leak.

Tomer-Yerushalmi assumed full responsibility for the release of the recording and subsequently disappeared, prompting an intense search by the Israeli military and police. She was found on Sunday, November 3, on a beach north of Tel Aviv and later arrested on suspicion of fraud and breach of trust, abuse of official power, obstruction of justice, and leaking information as a public official.

According to Israeli authorities, the military attorney allegedly attempted suicide, while media outlets like PressTV and Hispan TV reported that «she has been publicly defamed, dismissed from her position, and subjected to investigation for exposing who committed the rape.»

Soldiers Free and Unrepentant

Five reservist soldiers were charged in February 2025 with «grave abuse» against the detained Palestinian, who was left with broken ribs, a punctured lung, and a torn rectum due to the assault. However, they remain free without any measures of pre-trial detention.

Four of the accused appeared before the press last Sunday, their faces covered by masks, and were supported by far-right Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, boasting about continuing their freedom and declaring to the media, «We will prevail.»

One of them, identified only with the initial «A,» stated, «I am here today because I am tired of the silence. Instead of gratitude, we receive accusations; instead of appreciation, silence.»

Subsequently, one of them revealed his face and appeared on Channel 14 Israel, where he claimed to feel no remorse after the video’s leak, even presenting himself as a victim.

In fact, he demanded that the military attorney who leaked the footage be questioned.

Although the Israeli organization Breaking the Silence, composed of former soldiers who testify about the abuses they witnessed or committed, has confirmed that systematic torture at the Sde Teiman military base is a fact and not an invention, the Israeli military cannot conceive how a video showing acts of abuse and torture by soldiers was leaked to the public.

Palestinian Prisoner Raped and Tortured

The Palestinian prisoner, whose name has not been revealed, was not only gang-raped by Israeli soldiers but also subjected to brutal torture.

As a result of the assault, he ended up with broken intestines and a torn rectum. Although he underwent 20 surgical operations, including colostomy and urostomy, he still suffers from severe medical complications.

According to HispanTV, he was released three weeks ago without being charged or tried—after being falsely incriminated, like thousands of other Palestinians.

According to sources familiar with the case, he was released to prevent him from testifying against his rapists, who are still at large.

«The victim fears for his life, likely to be silenced to cover up the atrocity, as, in the occupied Palestinian territories, it is the victim who must hide, not the perpetrator,» indicated the cited media.

A classified Israeli military order, leaked on social media, confirms that the Palestinian man raped on camera for 15 minutes in July 2024 was a civilian, not an elite Hamas combatant, as the Zionist regime claimed to justify the crime.

According to the document, he is one of the 1,700 Gazans detained without charges and released in the prisoner exchange agreed on October 13, 2025.

Sexual Assaults: A Standard Procedure of Israel Against Palestinians

The UN Investigation Commission determined that «forced nudity, sexual harassment, threats of rape, and sexual assaults» constitute «standard operating procedures» perpetrated by Israeli occupation forces against Palestinians.

According to HispanTV, other forms of sexual and gender-based violence, including rape and genital mutilation, are committed under direct orders or with the endorsement of the Israeli political and military leadership, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu—against whom the International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued an arrest warrant—and his defense minister.

The UN has found that the frequency, prevalence, and severity of these crimes demonstrate the deliberate use of sexual violence as a war method to «destabilize, dominate, oppress, and destroy the Palestinian people.»

Since October 7, Palestinians have been tortured and deprived of food in Israeli detention centers, as confirmed by testimonies from detainees, soldiers, and doctors.

In July, Francesca Albanese, UN Special Rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories, denounced in a report that torture of Palestinians in Israeli prisons has become widespread and systematic since October 7, 2023, when the Zionist regime began its massive bombing against Gaza.

«Since October 7, torture against Palestinian prisoners has become extensive and systematic. Both men and women detainees have been victims of sexual violence, including rape,» Albanese noted.