Monday, December 12, 15:08
An additional soldier arrested on suspicion of involvement with a “price tag” incident was unconditionally released after no evidence implicating him was found. Honenu responded: “The IDF should do some soul searching. They are harassing soldiers from very specific regions.”
An additional soldier arrested last week on suspicion of involvement with a “price tag” incident was unconditionally released. This is the second soldier released out of the three soldiers arrested last week.
The soldier, a resident of Adei Ad, was arrested last week served in the Adjutant Corps and was in the process of being released from the IDF after three years of service.
The soldier was held in custody by investigators from the Central Police Unit of the Military Criminal Investigation Division (MCID). The investigators claimed that approximately two months ago the soldier participated in a gathering of Shiloh Bloc residents near his community after a rumor was spread of a chance that a nearby outpost would be evacuated. The investigators even claimed that the soldier brought matches to one of his friends so that in the event that IDF forces approached the outpost the residents could set tires on fire to block the road.
The soldier’s remand was extended twice and this morning the soldier was unconditionally released without a deliberation even being held.
It should be noted that investigators from the MCID attempted to link the soldier’s name to “price tag” incidents, however the court ruled that there is no evidence linking the soldier to the incidents.
Honenu attorney Aharon Roza, who is representing the soldier, said in response that, “The announcement from the Military Advocate General’s Corps that they no longer insist on the soldier’s remand supports our claim that there is no link between him and the incidents known as “price tag” incidents and that the accusations were baseless.”
We reiterate that another soldier arrested on suspicion of involvement with “price tag” incidents was unconditionally released last week without a deliberation even being held, and after the MCID investigators refused to specify any accusation.
Several weeks ago a similar incident occurred when a soldier, a resident of the Shomron, was arrested on suspicion of a “price tag” incident and unconditionally released. The investigators also refused to present him with a specific accusation.
Honenu, which has provided legal support for the soldiers, reports that, “The IDF commanders should do some soul searching and stop classifying soldiers from certain regions as suspects until proven otherwise. It appears that the MCID has forgotten that first evidence is gathered and only then should suspects be arrested, and not the other way around.”