A military judicial panel has decided to mitigate the sentence imposed on an IDF officer convicted of the rape and sexual assault of a female subordinate.
Colonel Ataf Zahar was convicted of both crimes in 2006. He was sentenced to six years in prison, demoted to the rank of private and ordered to pay his victim NIS 35,000 (roughly $10,000) in damages.
Zahar has since petitioned to have his sentence cut several times, but was previously denied.
- His sentence was cut by 18 months on Wednesday.
Prior to his conviction, Zahar – who was considered among the military's senior Druze officers – served as an officer with the IDF Personnel Directorate and was tasked with the integration of Bedouin, Circassian and Druze soldiers in the IDF.