Israel Drops Sexual Assault Charges Against Five Soldiers

Israel's military has dismissed charges against five soldiers who were accused of sexually abusing a Palestinian prisoner at a military detention facility. The controversial decision has drawn praise from Prime Minister Netanyahu but sharp criticism from human rights organizations.

JERUSALEM — The Israeli military announced Thursday it will not pursue charges against five soldiers who faced accusations of physically and sexually abusing a Palestinian prisoner, in an incident that was partially recorded on video.

The controversial ruling concluded a divisive case that has split Israeli society since the soldiers’ detention in 2024 at the Sde Teiman military facility. Their arrest sparked outrage among far-right government officials and extreme nationalist groups, who staged violent protests at the prison.

While Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised the military’s decision, human rights advocates condemned it as overlooking serious abuse within Israel’s wartime detention system.

“Israel’s military advocate general just gave his soldiers license to rape — so long as the victim is Palestinian,” declared Sari Bashi, who leads the Public Committee Against Torture in Israel, following the case dismissal. She characterized the ruling as “the latest in a long line of actions that whitewash abuses against detainees whose frequency and severity have worsened since Oct. 7, 2023.”

Netanyahu endorsed the outcome, stating that “the state of Israel must pursue its enemies, not its heroic fighters.”

The dropped criminal charges detailed allegations that the soldiers dragged a Palestinian detainee across the floor, trampled on him, used a taser, and committed sexual assault by penetrating his rectum with an object. Medical treatment at an Israeli hospital revealed the prisoner had suffered broken ribs and rectal injuries requiring surgical repair before his return to detention.

Public awareness of the abuse allegations intensified when Israeli media aired leaked surveillance footage of the incident in August 2024.

The recording depicted masked soldiers removing a handcuffed detainee from where he lay face-down with other Palestinians in an enclosed area, then moving him to a section they blocked from view with protective barriers.

Military legal officials justified Thursday’s dismissal by arguing the video evidence failed to demonstrate abuse severe enough for criminal prosecution and had been inappropriately disclosed to news outlets. They also cited the Palestinian victim’s release to Gaza as creating uncertainty about his availability to provide testimony during trial proceedings.

Following months of questions about the video’s leak, Military Advocate General Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi — the military’s chief legal officer — revealed in November 2025 that she had authorized its public release. She explained her intention was to demonstrate the severity of the abuse and justify the military’s obligation to conduct an investigation.

After facing intense criticism from Netanyahu’s administration, she suddenly stepped down and vanished, prompting an urgent search that located her on a Tel Aviv beach without her phone. Authorities later retrieved the device, potentially containing evidence related to her case, from the ocean.

The Associated Press had previously examined claims of harsh treatment and abuse at Sde Teiman prior to the surveillance footage becoming public.

The detention center was established following the October 7, 2023 attacks to house Palestinians detained during Israel’s military campaign against Hamas in Gaza. The classified facility rapidly became controversial as staff members and former detainees reported instances of mistreatment and torture, leading Israeli civil rights organizations to petition the nation’s highest court for its closure.

Israel has faced ongoing criticism for allegedly failing to prosecute soldiers for offenses against Palestinians, with such accusations increasing during the Gaza conflict. Israeli officials maintain their forces operate within military and international legal frameworks and conduct thorough investigations of reported misconduct.