VIDEO CAPTURES ISRAELI SOLDIERS RAPING PALESTINIAN PRISONER, COURT ORDERS 5 JAILED
'THERE IS REASONABLE SUSPICION THAT THE ACTS WERE COMMITTED'
Aug. 6, 2024
Five Israeli soldiers accused of raping a Palestinian prisoner were ordered held without bail and horrifying video emerged capturing them in the act.
"From the evidence, there is a reasonable suspicion that the acts were committed," an Israeli military court in Beit Lid ruled and ordered the five soldiers detained.
Military prosecutors asked the court to extend the detention of the suspects until Sunday to give investigators more time to gather evidence, and the court agreed.
Since a previous hearing, the military court found "evidence has been added that strengthens the suspicion against the five soldiers," Israel National News reported.
Nearly 10,000 Palestinians are being held incommunicado in over-crowded Israeli prisons where they are being starved, beaten, tortured, sexually assaulted, denied medical attention, denied lawyers and deprived of contact with the outside world, The Free Lance reported in March.
The International Committee of the Red Cross can't even visit them.
At the time, at least 37 have died from lack of care, mistreatment or murder since the latest outbreak of open war between the Palestinians and Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. As of today, at least 60 Palestinians have died in Israeli prisons according to a report by the Israeli human rights group B'Tselem.
B'Tselem found that the abuse of prisoners was systemic.
"There is no room to doubt" that "torture" of prisoners is Israeli's official policy, the report, Welcome to Hell, found.
The torture policy, the report said, is enforced Israel's Minister of Internal Security Gvir Ben Itamar "with the full support of the Israeli government and prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu."
B'Tselem called on the International Criminal Court to investigate “individuals suspected of planning, directing and committing these crimes.” Israel cannot and will not stop it “since all state systems, including the judiciary, have been mobilized in support of these torture camps."
When the five soldiers were arrested last week, Israelis and some Israeli lawmakers protested their arrests by breaking into the jail where they were being held.
During a meeting two days later, Israeli Knesset member Hanoch Milwidsky saying he supports raping Palestinian prisoners. "Everything is legitimate," he says.
Milwdsky belongs to the Likud political party, which Israeli leader Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyau leads.
The video capturing the soldiers' rape of the Palestinian prisoner was broadcast on Monday by Israeli TV channel N12
The recording captures about 30 prisoners in a bunker surrounded by barbed wire. They lay on their stomachs blindfolded with their hands on the backs of their heads as seven guards surround them. All of the guards have their faces covered with balaclavas.
Two soldiers make one of the prisoners stand and move him to a corner, where all the soldiers surround him. Three of the soldiers hold up protective shields to cover up what they are doing to the prisoner from surveillance cameras.
One of the soldiers has a dog on a leash. The dog barks and lunges at the prisoner repeatedly as the soldiers rape him with an object.
The suspect was taken to the hospital hours later where doctors discovered his horrific injuries.
The soldiers' supporters accused the victim of being part of the Palestinian militia that raided Israel on Oct. 7, but prosecutors said he was actually a Hamas policeman.
At least two of the soldiers failed a polygraph test. It reported they were lying when they denied raping the victim.