Troops to remain in custody (Archive)
Photo: Reuters
IDF troops face abuse charges
Ten suspects held in custody, suspected of abusing Palestinians several months ago
Ten IDF soldiers, including an officer, were arrested in recent days in connection with two suspected cases of abuse suffered by Palestinians. The Jaffa Military Court ordered that the 10 be kept in custody for five to six days.
Army prosecutors noted that although the cases in question took places months ago, justice will be served.
"When we see offences of harming the Palestinians and undermine the IDF's image, we must act against those responsible for them," said one source.
In one case, eight troops servicing in the search and rescue battalion of the Home Front Command are suspected of assaulting Palestinians in Samaria, Ynet learned. The abuse was exposed after the B'Tselem organization filed a complaint with army prosecutors about six months ago.
The complaint prompted military investigators to launch two probes, but the decision to detain the suspects was only taken this week. Military officials refused to detail the exact nature of the offences attributed to the soldiers. According to information gathered by B'Tselem, in one case a Palestinian resident was ordered by the soldiers to throw away garbage.
Attorney Ilan Katz, who represents one of the suspects, said that the information collected does not specifically tie the suspected soldiers to alleged offences.
"It is regrettable that soldiers who carry out difficult tasks are detained for non-existent reasons," he said.
In the second case, a soldier and an officer were detained on suspicion of beating up a Palestinian during a West Bank rally. The incident in question took place several months ago.
The officer involved in the case denied allegations of deliberate assault, and claimed that the incident took place during an attempt to disperse Palestinian crowds while searching for weapons.
