In the video: the president of the country refers to the custody case (photo: photographer: Avi Kaner, recorder: Uri Bozaglo / L.A.M.)
One out of four female soldiers in the police service and the Security Service has experienced one or more sexual assaults - according to a report published today (Monday) by State Comptroller Matanyahu Engelman. The report submitted by the auditor dealt with the protection of female soldiers from sexual harassment, and it paints a worrying picture of the situation according to which female soldiers serving in both organizations are harassed regularly by commanders and prisoners. Despite this, the number of complaints that lead to indictments is extremely low, according to the report.
A., a former prison guard who, according to her, experienced "disdain and poor treatment" from the Security Service, welcomed the publication of the report, "which indicates the serious situation in IDF female soldiers who are sent to serve in settings such as the Israel Defense Forces are sexually harassed on such a wide scale."
She emphasized, "The organizational culture of the Shevast, where female soldiers are a cheap and permitted commodity, must change, as well as the culture of silence that so characterizes the Shevas and its commanders."
The former guard said, "I often complained to my commanders to save me and I was not answered. They treated me only because I am an IDF soldier as a cheap and permitted commodity.
A security prisoner ruled the prison with a high hand, with the knowledge and approval of my commanders, and I had no possibility of escaping from him." She attacked the organizational culture of the Shavas and claimed that according to her "soldiers and female soldiers are the losers".
She claimed that as soon as she entered the IDF, the IDF cut off all contact with her and she was never contacted by army officials.
"According to SHBS, female soldiers are a cheap and permitted commodity" (Photo: Reuven Castro)
As part of the report, female soldiers and conscripts repeated examples of sexual harassment they experienced during their service.
"A prisoner said to me, 'Wow, what would I do to you,'" one repeated.
"They look at me like a shawarma wheel, it's not legitimate, but there's nothing to be done about it," claimed another.
A guard on duty said that a detainee who was brought to the station pulled down his underwear in front of her and ordered her to perform a sexual act on him;
In another case, two inmates performed a sexual act in front of the guard.
In one case, an inmate rubbed a guard's leg and told her, "If there were no bars, I would jump on you."
The former warden expressed hope that after the publication of the report, significant steps will be taken for the benefit of the servicemen and women, "and they will be wrapped in a safety net, so that the cases of sexual harassment within the service will stop immediately."
She called for the opening of a commission of inquiry, "which will reveal to the public and to me the strength of the failure done to me and my friends by the security forces and others who had a hand in the matter."
The auditor's report is based on an internet survey among hundreds of mandatory and released servants, and it is published in the shadow of the case of the pimping in prison guards at Gilboa prison.
The data also shows that among the mandatory maids, the proportion of maids in the IAS who answered that they had experienced sexual abuse was the largest - 38%. That is, four out of ten female soldiers who served in the IAS experienced one or more sexual abuse during their service.
The online survey was conducted in August 2022 and was sent to approximately 13,000 conscripts and those released from conscription in the police, the Shavas and the Special Forces.
About 1,907 (14.4%) of the recipients answered the questionnaires.
The number of respondents included in the data analysis amounts to 1,275.
The mandatory servants were required to answer questions related, among other things, to the issue of being protected during their service: to sexual or welfare-related injuries;
Attitude of commanders and disobedience;
wild behavior;
Medical Care;
as well as exposure to unusual events that were not properly handled.
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4 out of every 10 female soldiers in the Shavas have experienced at least one sexual assault. Gilboa Prison (Photo: Flash 90, no)
The report shows that 70% of the sexual assaults were committed by a permanent employee or commander.
In the police, 62% of injuries were recorded by permanent employees.
The rest were carried out by permanent commanders, conscripts and civilians.
In the Shavas, 51% of the sexual assaults were committed by permanent servants, 24% by prisoners, and the rest by permanent servants or commanders. In the ranks of the Security Forces, 41% of the sexual assaults were committed by permanent servants, the rest by civilians, commanders and conscripts.
Between the years 2019-2021, the Unit for Gender Equality in the Police (Yohalam) handled 442 complaints about sexual harassment among male and female policemen on duty and on duty. According to the data of the report, only six of the complaints from the duty officers matured into criminal indictments: four indictments were filed in 2019 ; two in 2020, and in 2021 no indictment was filed. It was also found that out of 442 during the three years, 149 of them were from conscription officers (34%) - even though the proportion of conscription officers in the police (including volunteers and police officers) is approx. 7% only.
Also from an examination of 44 indictments submitted by the Police Disciplinary Department to the Disciplinary Court in 2019-2021 against regular police officers for offenses of sexual harassment or inappropriate behavior, it appears that 17 (39%) of the victims were conscripts.
41% of sexual assaults - by permanent employees.
Female fighters in the MGB (Photo: Reuven Castro)
In the Shavas, between the years 2019-2021, the Yaholam handled 185 complaints of permanent and mandatory employees.
Over the years, in only one case of the complaints of the duty officers was a criminal indictment filed;
In another case, a conditional settlement was agreed upon.
The rate of complaints among duty guards in these years stands at 37% of all complaints, despite the fact that their rate is only about 6% of the total workforce at the Security Service. For example, a security prisoner said to the guard on duty, "I will only go into the cell if the guard goes in with me ... If there were no bars, I would jump on you." In a series of incidents, security prisoners performed sexual acts in front of female prison guards on duty. From an
examination of the 12 indictments submitted by the Disciplinary Branch to the Shavas Disciplinary Court in 2019-2021 for offenses of sexual harassment and inappropriate behavior On a sexual background, it appears that five (about 42%) of the indictments dealt with harming conscripts.
In the Shavas, they blamed the "generation gap between the organization's servants", which they claim "creates a complexity that is reflected in the existence of a greater awareness among the young guards about the issue of personal spaces and boundaries, alongside the language and behavior gaps among the permanent guards."
33% of female conscripts were sexually harassed at least once.
Female fighters in the IDF (photo: IDF spokesperson)
State Comptroller Mateniho Engelman noted that the IDF does not publish to the public the surveys it conducts on the issue of sexual harassment, and does not present the findings to the Knesset Committee for the Advancement of the Status of Women and Gender Equality. From the IDF's research, it appears that 33% of female conscripts have been sexually harassed one or more times since their enlistment in the IDF. According to the study, 47% of the incidents of sexual harassment of female soldiers were carried out by soldiers, and 20% of them were carried out by commanders
. Exposing the case of pimping in prison guards at Gilboa Prison and examining the service in units outside the IDF, sided with the IDF. In the report they presented about six months ago, they claimed that the IDF has "proper conduct and allows for a proper reporting atmosphere."
Attorney Karen Barak, who represents the female prison guards who were excommunicated at Gilboa prison, attacked the report: "The IDF and the Israel Defense Forces need to bow their heads today in front of the IDF soldiers and their parents. The report proves what we have been claiming for years: the Israel Defense Forces is neglecting Soldiers to their fate and the IDF systematically ignores this.
She continued, "The report states that the degree of control of the prisoners in the security wings is excessive and comes at the expense of the personal safety of female prison guards on duty who suffer sexual abuse from the security prisoners and some of them are even placed in these wings without having undergone basic professional training .
In addition, the auditor states that female prison guards do not receive backing from their commanders in the Security Service regarding their complaints about security prisoners. The auditor accuses the IDF of deliberately concealing from the public and the Committee for the Advancement of the Status of Women in the Knesset the data it has regarding the extent of sexual abuse of IDF female soldiers, and once again we are witnessing a cover-up and concealment mechanism of the security agencies in Israel just like in the case of the pimp in the jails.
"The figure according to which 70% of the complaints submitted by female soldiers for sexual abuse during their service in the Security Service were not handled at all or were handled poorly is not surprising at all.
The IDF's treatment of IDF female soldiers was and remains discreditable, as evidenced: the auditor states that female military servicemen are sexually assaulted 7 times more often than female IDF personnel. The report is a certificate of poverty for the State of Israel and its treatment of women. The conclusion that emerges from the data is one: the security agencies are doing one hand to hide and the cover-up of the sexual vulnerabilities of conscript soldiers who are stationed in the Shavas.
Hence there is no escape from the establishment of a state investigative committee to examine the scope of the cover-up in the case of the pimp in Sohorot."
Shavas: "We will examine the data of the report in order to take further steps"
The Israel Defense Forces responded: "We are proud of the significant service of the duty guards at the Israel Defense Forces and believe in their contribution, both men and women.
"We do not take our responsibility for the safety of all the officers in the organization lightly.
As detailed in the report, only in the last year was a dedicated helpline for female prison guards inaugurated and the organization vigorously engages in internal and continuous advocacy to create a protected and empowering work environment. In recent months, a forum for the empowerment of women led by the commissioner was even established. It is not for nothing that the State Comptroller found a place to note and praise the work being done at the Shev. In dealing with incidents of sexual harassment and minimizing their number, yes, every complaint is examined and treated with extreme care.
"A satisfaction survey conducted in December of last year and the report of the IDF security committee which was presented in the Knesset in May 2022 found that the duty guards are proud of their service and even expressed a desire to continue in permanent service in the IDF, requests that stand at an average of about 60% in recent years and indicate their desire to integrate in the organization.
"At the same time, there is no doubt that the findings of the State Comptroller's report indicate that there is still work ahead of us.
We will carefully examine the report's data in order to take additional steps to prevent future incidents."
IDF: "We operate with zero tolerance towards cases of harassment and sexual assault"
The IDF spokesman said in response: "The IDF operates with zero tolerance towards cases of harassment and sexual assault and works to maintain a unit climate that respects its servants in all units. The servants stationed in the units of the Ministry of Internal Security were mobilized by virtue of the Security Service Law and perform a significant and challenging service. The IDF sees itself as having Expanding responsibility towards all of his servants and in the process towards the servants in these units, and therefore the head of the personnel department, Major General Yaniv Asor, ordered in October 2021 the establishment of a special team led by Brigadier General Gai Hasson to examine the recruitment process, the escorting and the conditions of service of the servants in units outside the IDF "L, with an emphasis on the Israel Police and the prison service.
"In accordance with the committee's conclusions and recommendations, a dedicated directorate was established in the IDF under the command of a lieutenant colonel.
Once every two months, the directorate conducts audits in the prisons where mandatory servants are stationed, according to Gantt audits, in order to verify that indeed the servants in these units receive proper treatment and a respectful service environment.
"The IDF is working to strengthen the cooperation with the IDF commissioners in the bodies over the years, and as part of this, last August there was a conference on learning and tightening work mechanisms, led by the IDF IDF Chief, Brigadier General Ella Shedo-Shechtman.
In addition, the IDF's Mahot Center (coping and support center), which provides accompaniment and support in a variety of tools to victims of sexual abuse in IDF units and units outside the IDF, was recognized and assimilated by the prison service officers.
The police: "Every report of an injury is thoroughly examined and treated accordingly"
In response, the Israel Police stated: "The police take seriously any harm on a sexual basis and handle every report, along with carrying out prevention and information activities at all times. The population of mandatory servicemen receives special attention in this context. Any report of suspected sexual harassment or inappropriate behavior is thoroughly examined and treated accordingly , including an envelope for the victim and transfer to the treatment of the authorized party.
"The increase in reports and their nature mainly indicates an increase in awareness and the sense of trust and security of the servants and zero tolerance towards sexually harassing police officers.
We will continue to work to promote a respectful, protected and safe work environment for all employees of the organization."
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