Rabbi Meir Mazuz, a figure of significant influence in Israeli politics, has openly expressed support and blessing for Israeli soldiers accused of sexually assaulting a Palestinian prisoner. Rather than calling for their arrest, Mazuz advocated for their “honoring,” according to Israeli Broadcasting Authority (IBA) reports.
The IBA revealed that Rabbi Mazuz recently met with soldiers who served in the notorious Sde Teyman prison, located in the Negev Desert in southern Israel. These soldiers have been accused of sexually assaulting a Palestinian prisoner from Gaza detained there.
The report stated: “The rabbi was seen blessing one of the soldiers accused in the case.”
In a video broadcast by the IBA and widely circulated on social media, Rabbi Mazuz told one of the accused soldiers: “You will be completely exonerated. What did you do? You struck the enemy, so what? Everything is fine. In any other country, you would have been awarded.”
The report also mentioned that the meeting was attended by a lawyer representing some of the soldiers implicated in the sexual assault of the Palestinian prisoner.
The lawyer reportedly told the rabbi: “A medical opinion confirmed that the terrorist [referring to the Palestinian who was assaulted] was lying,” according to the claim.
In response, Rabbi Mazuz said: “If that’s true, don’t we have the right to do so?”
The IBA noted that Rabbi Mazuz, originally from Tunisia, is one of the most influential rabbis among the ultra-Orthodox (Haredi) community and within Israeli politics. His voice and decisions carry significant weight with policymakers.
The report added: “Senior ministers and Knesset members from the Likud party often seek Rabbi Mazuz’s blessings and advice, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has visited him at his home.”
In mid-July, Hebrew media circulated a leaked video documenting the incident where Israeli soldiers sexually assaulted a Palestinian prisoner from Gaza at the infamous Sde Teyman prison in southern occupied Palestine.
Channel 12 Israel broadcast footage from the prison’s internal cameras, showing the night of the assault on the Palestinian prisoner, whose identity remains undisclosed.
The footage, whose date and source remain unclear, shows several Israeli reserve soldiers selecting a prisoner from a group of over 30 detainees lying on the prison yard ground with their eyes blindfolded.
The video then captures the soldiers taking the Palestinian prisoner to a corner of the yard, using shields to hide their actions.
Channel 12 added: “It’s evident that the soldiers were aware of the security cameras and were attempting to conceal their actions behind the shields.”
The footage shows the soldiers committing the sexual assault, described as sodomy under these conditions.
Hours later, the prisoner was transferred to a hospital, bleeding from his injuries. Medical reports confirmed the injury resulted from the insertion of a foreign object.
On July 29, a significant uproar arose in Israel when military prosecutors arrived at the prison to investigate nine soldiers accused of sexually assaulting the Palestinian prisoner. Five of the soldiers were later released.
Israeli right-wing figures, including ministers and Knesset members, called for the soldiers’ release, referring to them as “heroes.”
Despite the ongoing investigation by the Israeli military prosecutor’s office, no formal charges have been filed against the accused soldiers.
