Israeli police have detained Maj. Gen. Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi, the former Military Advocate General (MAG) and highest-ranking legal officer in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), on charges including fraud, breach of trust, obstruction of justice, and unauthorized disclosure of classified information. The arrest follows her admission that she personally authorized the leak of surveillance footage from the notorious Sde Teiman detention facility, showing IDF reservists allegedly gang-raping and torturing a Palestinian detainee in July 2024.
The Leaked Video: Graphic Evidence of Sexual Torture
The footage, broadcast by Israel’s Channel 12 in August 2024, depicts reservists from the elite Force 100 unit dragging a blindfolded Palestinian prisoner behind riot shields. Hidden from cameras, the soldiers allegedly sodomized him with a sharp object, rupturing his bowel, damaging his lungs, and breaking ribs – injuries so severe he required hospitalization and was later released in a Gaza prisoner exchange.
Five soldiers were indicted in February 2025 for “aggravated abuse and serious bodily harm” – notably not for rape, despite the video and medical evidence. Their trial continues, but defense lawyers now demand dismissal, arguing the leak prejudiced the case.
Dramatic 24-Hour Disappearance and Arrest
On November 2, Tomer-Yerushalmi disappeared for hours, abandoning her car on a Tel Aviv beach with a cryptic note reading, “I love you, take care of yourselves.” A massive search involving police, IDF, and rescue teams ensued amid fears of suicide amid death threats from hardliners. Found unharmed, she underwent medical checks before immediate arrest.
A Tel Aviv court extended her detention until November 5, citing “grave concerns of interference.” She is held in isolation at Neve Tirza women’s prison, with cameras installed in her cell on orders from far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir. Former chief military prosecutor Col. Matan Solomesh was also detained.
Sde Teiman: “Israel’s Guantánamo” and Systemic Abuse
Sde Teiman, a Negev desert base turned mass detention camp, has housed thousands of Gazans classified as “unlawful combatants” – denying them POW protections or lawyer access.
Whistleblowers and UN reports detail of Rape with objects (electric probes, vegetables, fire-extinguisher nozzles), genital electrocution, dog attacks. Forced nudity, diaper-wearing, starvation, amputations from restraints. There are at least 80 Palestinians who killed in this sexual torture since October 2023.
A March 2025 UN Commission of Inquiry concluded sexual violence is a “method of war” encouraged by Israel’s leadership. B’Tselem and AOAV label the prison network “torture camps,” with 88% of IDF war-crime probes closed without action.
Political Firestorm: Heroes or Criminals?
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the leak “the worst PR disaster in Israel’s history.” Ben-Gvir and Defense Minister Israel Katz branded Tomer-Yerushalmi a traitor spreading “blood libels.”
Far-right mobs, including Knesset members, stormed Sde Teiman and Beit Lid bases in July 2024 to block soldier arrests, chanting support for the accused. Polls show most Israelis oppose prosecuting the reservists.
Left-leaning critics and human rights groups hail Tomer-Yerushalmi as a whistleblower exposing impunity.
