IDF soldier arrested on suspicion of raping female comrade

Gag order issued on details of case, but Military Police say troops served together in combat unit

By ToI Staff 6 July 2017, 6:14 pm

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Illustrative: Male and female combat soldiers of the Caracal Battalion train to fight an Islamic State assault on southern Israel in late March 2017. (IDF Spokesperson's Unit)

Military Police have arrested an IDF soldier on suspicion of raping a female soldier in his battalion.

On Thursday, the soldier was brought before the Jaffa Military Court for a hearing that saw his remand extended until Monday.

The soldier was arrested last week, Hebrew media reported.

A gag order was issued on the details of the investigation in order to protect the female soldier’s identity, although it was revealed that the two soldiers served together in a combat unit, according to Hebrew media.

In May, Military Police also arrested a soldier on suspicion of raping one of the female soldiers in his unit the month before. According to Channel 10 news, the soldiers served in the mixed-gender Bardelas Battalion. This could not be confirmed with the IDF. The suspect’s lawyers did not deny that their client and his accuser had sex, but claimed that it was consensual, according to a Ynet news report at the time.