In the wake of the resignation of IDF Maj.-Gen. Yifat Tomer‑Yerushalmi, as Military Advocate-General, a sharp dispute has erupted over the proper authority and remit of the investigation into the case.
On Saturday evening, Justice Minister Yariv Levin notified Attorney-General Gali Baharav‑Miara that she is prohibited from any involvement in the inquiry. On Sunday, Baharav-Miara responded: “Your political involvement in the investigation is erroneous, baseless, and harmful.”
The friction concerns the ongoing probe into the leak of a video from the Sde Teiman detention facility (July 2024) depicting alleged abuse of Palestinian detainees by reservist soldiers. Six defendants were later sentenced in connection with that matter.
A separate video showing military-police officers arriving to arrest the reservists triggered riots and a mass break-in at the facility, involving several lawmakers.
On Friday, Baharav-Miara ordered the opening of a criminal investigation into the leak. At the same time, Defense Minister Israel Katz pressed Tomer-Yerushalmi - and she resigned before he formally dismissed her - after acknowledging in a letter that she had approved the leak of the video.
Levin bars Baharav-Miara from interfering with appointing new MAG
Levin specified on Saturday night that the attorney-general is banned from engaging with the video itself, any alleged miscarriages of justice along the way, and the appointment or oversight of Tomer-Yerushalmi’s successor as MAG.
Levin argued that the prohibition was justified by Baharav-Miara’s “personal involvement in the Sde Teiman case, and the high likelihood that you will be called to testify,” citing responses submitted to the High Court of Justice that were later contradicted by Tomer-Yerushalmi’s actions.
In its update to the High Court on September 16, the legal advisory stated that the investigation into the leak was inconclusive and that there was no reason to continue with criminal proceedings.
In a counter-statement on Sunday, Deputy Attorney-General Dr. Gil Limon wrote that the authority Levin claims to wield “lacks any factual or legal basis, and is an attempt to illegally influence law-enforcement proceedings.”
Yonah Jeremy Bob contributed to this report.