Ten days of house arrest for soldiers who raped a Palestinian prisoner: How Israel and its society normalize rape

A statement from the Israeli army spokesperson noted that the soldiers would be interrogated next week, once the investigation is complete, and before charges are formally filed against them.

The prosecution argued that "these soldiers have families and do not pose a danger to the public, hence they should be released to their homes."

This allegation coincides with similar arguments made by defense attorneys, stating that "there are difficulties in the course of the investigation to prove the charges."

On August 13, the Israeli military prosecution and the military public defense decided to transfer five soldiers, suspected of raping a Palestinian prisoner at Israel's Sde Teiman detention center, to home detention for 10 days. The prosecution argued that "these soldiers have families and do not pose a danger to the public, hence they should be released to their homes."

This Israeli "sympathy" for the soldiers accused of raping a Palestinian prisoner—who was subsequently hospitalized with a ruptured bowel, lung damage, and broken ribs—culminated in a protest at the military facility. Dozens of Israelis stormed the Sde Teiman detention center on July 29 in protest of the Israeli military police's arrest of the reserve soldiers accused of the gang rape.

The sympathy may have reached the point of "normalizing" the issue of raping Palestinian prisoners and even legitimizing it, even after Hebrew newspapers published a leaked video from the detention center. The footage shows reserve soldiers dragging a restrained prisoner, hiding him from the cameras behind riot shields, and then raping him.

Days after the leak, Israel’s Channel 14 hosted one of the soldiers involved in the rape, identified as Meir from Unit 100. Appearing masked on the televised program, he praised the protest by Israelis defending him and his fellow soldiers, while criticizing the journalist who exposed the crime to the public. He asserted that they "kept the law in the pens at the detention center and that it is not easy to stand in front of the criminal and rapist prisoners," as he put it.

Following his appearance on the channel, the reservist soldier revealed his face and identity as Meir Ben Shitrit (Mikro Achmea), in a video on the X platform (formerly Twitter).

Does the visual evidence or the results of preliminary investigations carry any real weight in the Israeli judicial process, which has historically turned a blind eye—or perhaps even endorsed—longstanding violations against Palestinian prisoners? 

Yesterday, on August 26, Israel's Channel 14 hosted Meir Ben Shitrit once again to speak about his “ordeal” and “reveal everything about the Sde Teiman case.”

An investigation as a mere formality

The Wall Street Journal released an extensive investigation that relied on the investigations conducted by the Israeli military into alleged sexual violations committed by reserve soldiers against a Palestinian detainee. The report stated that five of the soldiers were released, and they had all denied the charges against them.

The investigation revealed that two of the soldiers lied during their interrogations on a polygraph test, as indicated by an Israeli document published by Channel 12. The suspects were asked the same two questions: "Did you insert anything into the Palestinian man’s rectum during the search?" and "Are you concealing the identity of the person who inserted something into the Palestinian man’s rectum?" The suspects answered no to both questions, but the polygraph proved they were not telling the truth.

But does the visual evidence or the results of preliminary investigations carry any real weight in the Israeli judicial process, which has historically turned a blind eye—or perhaps even endorsed—longstanding violations against Palestinian prisoners? Attorney Abeer Baker tells Raseef22, "If the Israeli institutions truly intended to respect the law in good faith, they would have put an end to all the violations occurring in the prisons since the beginning of the war on Gaza."

She continues, "However, the Israeli prosecution and the Supreme Court refrained from intervening to stop the ongoing torture, even after reports surfaced of prisoners dying under brutal torture."

"Our judicial experience in arguing cases before Israeli courts is enough to know that this entire scenario is nothing more than a charade, a farce through which law enforcement agencies are trying to restore their reputation in front of international public opinion, at a time when they’ve been active partners in the persecution of Palestinians and turning a blind eye to incitement to genocide.”

Baker emphasized that the issue is not just about the Sde Teiman detention center, which gained notoriety after testimonies from Gaza prisoners who were released, or the rape accounts relayed by journalist Mohammed Arab through his lawyer Khaled Mahajna, who was the first civilian to visit the detention center and hear about the horrific torture methods used there.

The issue, according to Baker, extends to all the facilities where Palestinians from Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem are detained.

Baker believes that "we are dealing with a legal system that ignored investigations into crimes committed over the past ten months, which makes it responsible for the continuation of these violations—not just individual soldiers. Shifting the blame onto a single soldier is a way to protect those responsible for enforcing the law."

Half of Israelis support the rape of prisoners

The video documenting the rape, along with the testimony of the doctor who treated the assaulted prisoner at the hospital, confirmed the presence of "severe injury to the rectum caused by the insertion of a foreign object." In addition, the Israeli Information Center for Human Rights, B'Tselem, published a report titled Welcome to Hell, which documented testimonies from 55 Palestinian prisoners, some of which detailed cases of rape and sexual assault.

Despite all this, many segments of Israeli society have expressed support for all forms of abuse against prisoners, including rape.

A shocking survey by Israel’s Channel 12 revealed that 47% of Israelis believe that Israeli soldiers have “the right to rape Palestinian detainees.”

Although Channel 12 reported that "the detainee seen in the video did not participate in the October 7 attack and, according to Israeli military intelligence, was a police officer working in the drug enforcement division," Israeli journalists have exploited the widespread belief in Israel that every Gazan is "involved" with Hamas and that every "involved" individual is part of the "elite" group that participated in the October 7 events.

During an appearance on Channel 12, Israeli journalist Yehuda Schlesinger remarked, "It's unfortunate that [the Israeli soldiers] don’t do this systematically as part of a policy of abusing detainees. This is what they deserve. This is the best form of revenge we can offer them. Perhaps we can use it as a means of deterrence.”

During an appearance on Channel 12, Israeli journalist Yehuda Schlesinger remarked, "It's unfortunate that [the Israeli soldiers] don’t do this systematically as part of a policy of abusing detainees."

He added, "This is what they deserve. This is the best form of revenge we can offer them. Perhaps we can use it as a means of deterrence.”

There are also noticeable reactions and comments from Israeli citizens on the news published by Israeli media on this subject. For instance, a comment posted under the label “female citizen” in an article published in Maariv reads: “Anyone who has doubts about what should be done with the detainees should watch the videos from October 7. Shame on the military police—are they finished investigating all the other issues?”

An Israeli citizen comments on news of the rape case.

An Israeli citizen comments on news of the rape case.

Another comment on the same news piece states: “A world turned upside down—Hamas tortures hostages and sends the videos to Ben Gvir, while our military police arrest reserve soldiers for mistreating terrorists... If this isn’t because of the leftist policies that fear the International Criminal Court, I don’t know what is. Where’s the patriotism? Where’s the defense of our soldiers? Shame, shame, shame.”

An Israeli citizen comments on news of the rape case.

An Israeli citizen comments on news of the rape case.

A shocking survey by Israel’s Channel 12 revealed that 47% of Israelis believe that Israeli soldiers have “the right to rape Palestinian detainees.”

Perhaps those who support the raping of Palestinian prisoners within Israeli society may draw this “legitimacy” from the political establishment, where officials openly condemned the investigation of the accused soldiers and hailed them as heroes.

Itamar Ben Gvir, Israel’s national security minister —who has been directly responsible for escalating torture policies in prisons since the start of the war—commented on the arrest and investigation of the accused soldiers by saying: “The spectacle of military police officers coming to arrest our best heroes at Sde Teiman is nothing less than shameful.”

“I recommend that the defense minister, the [IDF] chief of staff, and the army authorities back the fighters and learn from the prison service,” Ben Gvir declared. “The time for leniency, summer camps, and patience for the terrorists are over. Fighters should get full backing,” according to a report published by Channel 12.

"We are dealing with a legal system that ignored investigations into crimes committed over the past ten months, which makes it responsible for the continuation of these violations—not just individual soldiers. Shifting the blame onto a single soldier is a way to protect those responsible for enforcing the law."

In a related context, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich denounced the investigations into the accused soldiers, stating, “IDF soldiers deserve respect and must not be arrested like common criminals. I call on the military legal authority to get its hands off our heroic soldiers.”

Is Israel afraid of public opinion?

Palestinian writer and researcher Dr. Aqel Salah asserts that “the issue of prisoners and killing dozens of them could lead to Israel being prosecuted if the Palestinian Authority files a case with the International Criminal Court (ICC). Israel might be trying to mitigate the criticism that could further tarnish its image, by claiming that it is interested in investigating violations against the prisoners. Israel is fully aware that Hamas' motive behind October 7 was to free prisoners serving life sentences, who are about 550 in number.”

Perhaps those who support the raping of Palestinian prisoners within Israeli society may draw their “legitimacy” from the political establishment, where officials openly condemned the investigation of the accused soldiers and hailed them as heroes.

The researcher also believes that the rape case could expose Israeli leaders, particularly those responsible for prison policies, to arrest abroad and lawsuits in international courts and the International Criminal Court.

Meanwhile, attorney Abeer Baker highlights the prosecution of Israel and its leaders in international legal bodies: "This is what has them on high alert today. They are trying to convince these bodies that they have a legal system and independent investigative authorities that are not biased and that investigate all suspicions that indicate the occurrence of war crimes."

"However, our judicial experience in arguing cases before Israeli courts is enough to know that this entire scenario is nothing more than a charade, a farce through which law enforcement agencies are trying to restore their reputation in front of international public opinion, at a time when they have been active partners in the persecution of Palestinians and turning a blind eye to incitement to genocide," Baker asserts.

According to The Cradle, Israel’s military advocate general, Major General Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi had responded to criticism over the arrests by saying they were crucial for shielding Israel from war crimes charges in international courts and ensuring continued weapons deliveries from the US and European nations.

Israel’s military advocate general, Major General Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi had responded to criticism over the soldiers' arrests by saying they were crucial for shielding Israel from war crimes charges in international courts and ensuring continued weapons deliveries from the US and European nations.

Tomer-Yerushalmi told a Knesset committee on August 11 that the independence of the military justice system is “essential to the state’s arguments in international tribunals.”

The military official noted that “there are countries for which the question of whether they sell and supply us with munitions is [determined by] whether we investigate when we receive a complaint.”

Israel is almost completely reliant on foreign countries, most notably the US, for the weapons needed to continue its military campaign in Gaza.

During an Israeli Supreme Court session on August 7, human rights organizations demanded the closure of the Sde Teiman detention center, stating that the evidence of violations inside has revealed an unimaginable reality. However, the Israeli public caused chaos and uproar during the session, with some chanting “Shame... Shame,” while others called for more rapes, shouting, "The people are king."

Although Israeli human rights organizations are calling for the closure of the detention center, the incitement from the political establishment and large segments of Israeli society against Palestinians may render these demands mere ink on paper.

During an Israeli Supreme Court session on August 7, human rights organizations demanded the closure of the Sde Teiman detention center—dubbed “the slaughterhouse” by many. The rights groups stated that the evidence of violations inside has accumulated and revealed an unimaginable reality.

However, the public caused chaos and uproar during the session, with some chanting “Shame... Shame,” while others called for more rapes, shouting, "The people are king!"