Indictments filed against 10 soldiers for abusing younger colleague

Assault charges were filed against 10 soldiers who participated in the hazing of a younger soldier in the Kfir Brigade. The military court in Jaffa decided to keep the defendants in custody for the duration of the trial.

The ten were suspended over allegations, revealed Friday, that they beat and abused a young recruit during a training exercise in the southern Jordan Valley. The older soldiers allegedly took turns punching their younger colleague in his mid-section for touching the unit’s talisman, an honor deemed too great for such a “green” recruit.

The victim required medical attention for a burst spleen suffered from the beatings and was transferred to Emek Medical Center in Afula.

Kfir Brigade commander Col. Udi Ben Moha suspended the soldiers pending an investigation by the Military Police, the findings of which will be passed to the military prosecutor, reported the IDF spokesperson.

One of the suspects’ lawyers told Army Radio that his client had only gently beaten the younger soldier and had no intention of sending him to the hospital.