An Israeli military battalion that assaulted and detained a team from CNN in the occupied West Bank was redeployed after a month-long suspension, an Israeli security source said.
The reservist unit, which operates under the ultra-Orthodox “Netzah Yehuda” battalion, underwent an educational seminar and additional training, the source told CNN. According to Israeli Army Radio, the unit is expected to fully resume its operational activities in the coming days.
On March 30, soldiers from the battalion detained a team from CNN which covered settler violence in the West Bank village of Tayasir. A soldier choked photojournalist Cyril Theophilos, knocking him to the ground and damaging his camera. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Chief of Staff, Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir, took disciplinary action considered unprecedented, .
A military officer told the CNN that the aggression against Theophilos would be investigated by the Israeli military police. The IDF classified the incident as a “serious ethical and professional failure.” The Army had stated that it would undergo training “with the aim of reinforcing its professional and ethical foundations” and that the Israeli Central Command, responsible for military operations in the West Bank, would decide when the unit could return to service.
Police have not yet released findings or disciplinary measures following the investigation. The soldier who attacked the photojournalist CNN has not, to date, faced any additional suspensions or known disciplinary measures.
Israeli police investigate previous incident
Meanwhile, the Israel police’s Internal Investigations Department, an independent body within the corporation, is investigating a previous incident in which an officer broke the wrist of the Israeli police’s senior producer. CNNAbeer Salman.
On March 17, Salman was among a group of journalists covering Ramadan prayers outside the Lions’ Gate in Jerusalem’s Old City. Muslim worshipers, prevented from praying at the Al-Aqsa Mosque due to , had gathered outside the Old City walls for prayers.
The police moved the faithful to another location close to the walls of the Old City when agents threw stun grenades at the group. Two journalists were detained at the scene while police attacked them and damaged their equipment. After being released, the police ordered the journalists to retreat. Images from the scene show the group obeying instructions when a plainclothes agent grabbed Salman’s hand, twisting it and causing a broken wrist.
In response to a series of questions about the incident and whether there were any developments, Israeli police initially released the same statement as before, which the Union of Journalists in Israel called “factually incorrect.”
The statement alleged that the journalists “refused to comply with police instructions” and did not identify themselves as press. The conduct, according to the note, “raised suspicion among the agents” and the filming equipment “appeared to be intended to provoke”.
Police did not respond to a list of questions from CNNincluding what instructions were not followed, what conduct was considered suspicious, and why owning a camera is seen as provocative.
“We are unable to comment on the matter at this time,” police said in a statement, referring to the ongoing investigation. The corporation did not say when it expects to complete the investigation.
