On Tuesday, 19 Adar a 25 year old married soldier from the community of Bat Ayin in the Etzion Bloc was detained on suspicion of leaking military information to residents of the area. The soldier serves in an intelligence position in the Etzion Territorial Brigade and is a respected soldier who fulfills his duties exceptionally well. The following day Jerusalem Magistrate Court Judge Miriam Kaslasi extended his remand until Monday, March 16. The soldier denies all charges.

Honenu reports that both during interrogation and in a court deliberation the police representatives refused to specify what the charges against the soldier are and merely said that he is suspected of transferring information. It is important to note that the soldier’s wife gave birth to a son, their second child, approximately two weeks prior to his detention and recently the soldier has hardly been at his base due to a medical issue.

On Monday, 25 Adar the Jerusalem Magistrate Court extended the soldier’s remand by four days. Again during the deliberation no specific charges were made against the soldier and the police have not presented any evidence against him or revealed the dates on which he is suspected of transferring information.

Honenu attorney David HaLevi, who is representing the soldier, stated that, “This is a false detention. The Israeli Police are continuing any way they can their attempt to pull together a framework of evidence for which there is no basis. My client has been interrogated four times and asked only general questions. Not even one piece of evidence has been presented to him. We estimate that our client will be released from remand soon and consider the matter at hand to be much ado about nothing.”

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)