Israeli Defense Ministry Halts Payments to Former Military Advocate Over Retirement Terms Dispute

A rare conflict has emerged between the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and the Finance Ministry regarding the retirement benefits of former military advocate Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi. The Finance Ministry's Accountant General, Michal Abadi-Boiangiu, has frozen part of the payments approved by IDF Chief of Staff Aviv Kochavi, which amount to millions of shekels. This was first reported by ynet on Thursday morning.

Following the report, Defense Minister Israel Katz demanded that Kochavi exhaust all possible legal proceedings against Tomer-Yerushalmi and refrain from making any decisions that would ease her conditions at this stage. Kochavi had authorized generous retirement terms for Tomer-Yerushalmi, including millions in benefits but excluding certain components. However, only some of these payments were disbursed before the freeze. The Finance Ministry is reviewing the decision and has raised questions about the benefit amounts.

Justice Ministry sources cited by the report criticized the Chief of Staff's decision as excessively generous and unreasonable, especially given the unresolved status of the criminal investigation against Tomer-Yerushalmi. Kochavi rejected the Finance Ministry's intervention, asserting his authority over the matter in a letter to Abadi-Boiangiu, who nevertheless maintained her position and withheld full payment.

Defense Minister Katz intervened strongly, calling for immediate steps to revoke all rights from Tomer-Yerushalmi, whom he accused of serious criminal offenses and harming IDF soldiers by allegedly protecting terrorists. Katz condemned her actions as among the most severe in IDF history, emphasizing the betrayal felt by soldiers' families. He also criticized the civilian judicial system for delaying indictment proceedings, which he said hindered further disciplinary measures, including imprisonment and rank revocation.

In May, Kochavi dismissed Tomer-Yerushalmi amid allegations of submitting false affidavits to the Supreme Court and covering up the investigation into the leaked Shde Teyman video. Alongside her dismissal, Kochavi imposed significant financial penalties, including revoking service period completion bonuses and retirement leave, cumulatively exceeding 1.5 million shekels. The IDF noted that further sanctions, such as demotion, could be considered depending on the investigation's outcome.

The Finance Ministry confirmed ongoing professional disagreements with the IDF over the calculation of final settlements and pensions. Abadi-Boiangiu ordered that all payments made or to be made to Tomer-Yerushalmi be treated as advances subject to offset pending the conclusion of legal proceedings.