The Military Prosecution on Thursday requested the military court in Beit Lid to extend the house arrest under supervision of five reserve IDF soldiers suspected of abusing a Hamas prisoner at the military detention facility at Sde Teiman base by two more weeks until September 5.
During the hearing, the prosecution argued that "the investigation is complete. Only a few minor investigative actions remain. In the next two weeks, we'll hear the defense's arguments before filing an indictment."
The prosecution revealed that 100 testimonies had been collected during the investigation, including one from the detainee and detailed the incident’s sequence of events for the first time.
"Upon review, the evidence supports the suspicions the accused engaged in an unscheduled activity in the wing where the detainee was being held. The facility commander ordered a search of the detainee, a search was conducted on another prisoner and, subsequently, a 'search' began on the defendant that lasted for 17 minutes. Afterward, searches were conducted on two other detainees," he said.
While the alleged search conducted on the said prisoner lasted 17 minutes, the searches on the other detainees lasted only a few minutes each, according to the prosecution.
Regarding the alleged assault on the prisoner, the prosecution said that two suspects approached the mattress on which the detainee was sleeping and led him away to the search area. The unit’s commander accompanied the team and three reserve soldiers stood with riot shields in a semicircle, creating a protective barrier with their bodies.
Then, two of the suspects pinned the prisoner to the wall and raised his arms. At this point, one of the suspects stood aside for 12 seconds, after which the detainee squirmed and fell to the ground, witnesses told the prosecution.
A minute and a half later, one of the reserve soldiers approached the detainee and for 15 minutes the suspects leaned over the prisoner's body, beat him with a baton, pushed and dragged him on the floor and used a taser against him, witnesses said.
During this time, one of the team members inserted an object into the prisoner's rectum, causing a cut and a puncture to the area. The detainee screamed and his blindfold fell off during the incident. The suspects then led him back to where his mattress was located, prosecutor said, citing witnesses.
According to the prosecution: "Their actions caused injuries to the prisoner's body, fractured his ribs and punctured his rectum. He required medical treatment. Afterward, they threatened him not to file a complaint." The suspects denied the allegations against them.
Attorney Adi Keidar, representing the suspects, requested that the prosecution drop the allegations related to sexual offenses in the incident. "Their accusations stand on shaky ground," he explained. Additionally, he requested that the military court allow both sides time to review the investigation materials.
"This case has, unfortunately, become public and we need to revert its status to a regular case. Two of the accused are young men with young children and their perceived danger was exacerbated by media coverage,” he said.
The IDF Spokesperson’s Unit said: "The military police’s investigation into the incident will conclude in the coming days and all the collected investigation materials will be handed over to the defense early next week. During this period, the defense will be allowed to hold a hearing if they wish to do so."