Tel Aviv Magistrate’s Court Judge Shelley Kutin on Monday extended the detention of former IDF military advocate-general Maj.-Gen. (res.) Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi until Wednesday, voicing concerns that she might obstruct the probe into the case against her.
Tomer-Yerushalmi is being investigated for allegedly leaking a video relating to the Sde Teiman Palestinian prisoner abuse case, in a dramatic decision showing the continuing fall of one of the IDF’s top officials until just days ago.
While the state prosecution had sought five additional days of detention to question Tomer-Yerushalmi regarding her alleged role in the leak, her defense lawyers argued that five of the other suspects have already been questioned and that many of the text messages that allegedly incriminate her are already in the possession of the police when they seized those other suspects’ phones.
Further, the defense lawyers argued that she has not tried to contact the other suspects to get them to obstruct the probe for over a week since her legal situation became clear to her, a sign that she will not do so going forward, which would support freeing her from detention.
However, the police pointed out that all of the mysterious events surrounding her disappearance on Sunday night may have been an elaborate scheme to destroy her phone in the Mediterranean Sea, a major form of obstruction of the investigation.
The remand hearing for Tomer-Yerushalmi also involves former chief military prosecutor Col. Matan Solomesh.
The two were apprehended by Israel Police late Sunday night.
Tomer-Yerushalmi is likely to be questioned on suspicion of obstructing an investigation, submitting a false document to the High Court of Justice, fraud and breach of trust, abuse of authority, and concealment of evidence.
Solomesh is expected to be questioned on suspicion of obstruction of an investigation, fraud, and breach of trust.
Tomer-Yerushalmi, who admitted to leaking the video and announced her resignation from the post on Friday, was missing for several hours on Sunday night. Police launched a search after losing contact with her since the morning; she failed to show up for scheduled meetings.
Her car was found abandoned on the beach, and the status of her personal phone remains unclear. In the evening, she was located on Herzliya Beach and referred for psychiatric evaluation.
National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir (Otzma Yehudit) said that Israel Prison Service Chief Commissioner Kobi Yaakobi had ordered that she be held in isolation under close supervision, monitored by guards and cameras.
Releasing the video to counter 'propaganda'
In her resignation letter on Friday to IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Eyal Zamir, she admitted that she had approved “the release of material to the media in an attempt to counter false propaganda against law enforcement officials in the army.”
“I take full responsibility for any material that was released to the media from within the unit. From that responsibility also stems my decision to end my tenure as military advocate-general,” she added.
Last week, a criminal investigation was opened into the leak of a video allegedly showing the abuse of a Gazan detainee at the Sde Teiman base last year, and that “the involvement of individuals within the Military Advocate-General’s Office is being examined.”
In July 2024, a Palestinian detainee at Sde Teiman was allegedly subjected to severe abuse by five reservist soldiers. According to the indictment, the detainee – who was bound and blindfolded – suffered broken ribs, a punctured lung, and injuries consistent with sexual assault after soldiers inserted a sharp object near his rectum.
The military police arrested nine soldiers in connection with the incident, sparking riots and break-ins at the base by far-right supporters and several Knesset members who sought to block the arrests.
One month later, in August 2024, a leaked video from inside Sde Teiman – broadcast by Channel 12 – appeared to show soldiers surrounding and abusing the detainee. The footage reignited outrage domestically and abroad, prompting a criminal probe and a public reckoning over the treatment of Palestinian prisoners.
Five reservists were indicted in February 2025 for aggravated abuse and serious assault.
Tomer-Yerushalmi appealed the extension of her detention, which was denied.