Eilat Police Officers Arrested for Alleged Abduction and Assault
Five Eilat Yasam police officers were arrested for allegedly abducting and beating a 38-year-old resident. Meanwhile, a separate complaint emerged regarding the alleged humiliating search of a 14-year-old girl.
Five police officers from the Eilat Yasam tactical unit have been arrested and investigated following allegations that they abducted, severely beat, and abandoned a 38-year-old resident in a remote mountainous area near the city. The victim, Yadin White, a member of the Hebrew Israelite community, recounted the harrowing ordeal in an interview, stating that he was targeted after police responded to a complaint about alleged harassment on the Eilat promenade.
"Instead of taking me to the station, the officers took me to an isolated place in the mountains and beat me up severely. I was handcuffed when they battered me. Afterward, they threw my phone and ID card on the ground and told me, 'Now go home,'" White said. He added that the incident completely shattered his sense of safety, leaving him too traumatized to leave his home. According to the Police Internal Investigations Department (PIID), the five suspects were questioned under caution on suspicion of kidnapping, aggravated assault, and obstruction of justice. Following their questioning, they were released to house arrest until Thursday, barred from approaching police stations, and prohibited from contacting one another for 11 days.
In a separate complaint also filed with the PIID, officers from the Eilat police station face allegations of conducting an humiliating and unjustified strip-search on a 14-year-old girl. The incident occurred during the summer when the teenager, who was under house arrest for a previous assault investigation, left her home to visit a friend. Police arrived at the scene and detained her for violating court-ordered conditions. Her mother and legal representation from the Public Defender's Office severely criticized the conduct, describing the search at the police station as invasive and traumatic.
"This is a shame. An eighth-grade girl, with no criminal record, was subjected to an experience akin to a sexual assault," said Adv. Nimrod Aviram of the Southern Public Defender's Office. In response, the Israel Police issued a statement defending the actions of the officers, asserting that the teenager had violated her release conditions, resisted lawful orders, and that no strip search was ever conducted.
