Trial for IDF officer accused of rape to commence
Legal proceedings in the trial of the retired IDF Brig. Gen. Ofek Buchris are set to begin Sunday, dealing mainly with trial's technical details rather than allegations; Buchris has publicly claimed innocence.
The Sunday proceedings are expected to mainly deal with technical details such as determining the panel of judges and matters of scheduling.
Channel 10 News reported Saturday night that the IDF will likely appoint a former senior judge to head the complex case. The Israeli military is also looking to find another senior IDF judge who does not know Buchris personally.
The decision to indict Buchris came while he was still an active-duty IDF officer. He retired shortly after it was announced that he was indicted for rape, so that he would be able to stand trial as a civilian.
He stands accused of raping his subordinate officers on three different occasions, in addition to sexual abuse of one other woman.
In total, 17 allegations were leveled against him in the indictment for incidents that allegedly took place in the period between July 2010 and September 2013.
According to the indictment, some of the incidents occurred in Buchris' military barracks room, his office, and his vehicle.
He has denied the claims against him. "I am innocent and will fight for my good name and innocence," he wrote in his statement upon retiring from the IDF.
Even though he has retired from the military, he will be provided with a defense by the IDF public defender's office.
