Gag Order Lifted: IDF Officer Convicted of Raping Palestinian Woman Who Sought a Work Permit, Sentenced to 11 Years

In October 2021 the IDF Court of Appeals, at Ynet's request, allowed publication of court records in a case that had been hidden from the public for years. Ynet, Israel Hayom and the Jerusalem Post reported that:

• An officer serving in the Civil Administration — the IDF body that issues permits to Palestinians — was convicted in 2017 (one outlet reports 2016) of raping a Palestinian woman who had come to him for a permit to work in Israel. He threatened to revoke her permits if she told anyone.
• He was also convicted of having sex with another Palestinian woman in exchange for permits, sexually harassing a Palestinian man, fraud and breach of trust, for acts committed in 2013–2014.
• He denied the allegations; the court found his account unreliable.
• He was sentenced to 11 years in prison and discharged from the military — described by Ynet as one of the heaviest punishments ever imposed on an IDF officer. On appeal, a three-judge panel replaced the discharge with demotion to private; the prison sentence stood.
• His name and photo remain under a gag order.

The IDF called it "one of the serious cases brought before the military tribunals" and said the sentence "befits the actions of the accused."

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