Zero tolerance for sex offenders – IDF head

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot says that the IDF will “do anything necessary to completely eradicate sexual offenses during military service.” In a missive sent to military commanders the chief of staff stresses that any intimate relationship between commanders and subordinates crosses a red line. Eisenkot adds that the military “will exercise zero tolerance” for such incidents.

Israel Radio quotes Eisenkot as saying the IDF’s strength is measured not only in its might on the battlefield but also in its moral strength.

The chief of staff’s missive comes in the wake of a much publicized case in which a former IDF female soldier sued her commander for sexual assault. The case ended in a plea bargain, and the verdict was criticized as being lenient in face of the emotional damage sustained by the victim.