Five Eilat Police Officers Arrested for Allegedly Beating Man

Five police officers from the Eilat Special Patrol Unit (Yasam) were investigated and arrested on suspicion of assaulting a man who had allegedly been harassing women on the Eilat promenade. The officers are accused of beating the man and leaving him bleeding on a beach in Eilat.

According to the complainant, a 38-year-old man from the Hebrew community, he was attacked by the officers about two months ago. He recounted that after being handcuffed and taken towards a police car, he was driven to a secluded area where he was severely beaten. He stated that his front teeth were knocked out, he sustained injuries all over his body, and was left alone. He was later found by Magen David Adom (MDA) paramedics, who located him via his phone.

The Police Internal Investigations Department (Mahash) stated that the five officers were questioned under caution on suspicion of kidnapping, aggravated assault, and obstruction of justice. Following their investigation, they were released to house arrest until Thursday and were prohibited from contacting each other and from approaching police stations for 11 days.

Mahash reported that the officers allegedly approached the man at a club in Eilat after complaints of harassment. They then allegedly handcuffed him, drove him to a secluded area under the guise of police activity, and assaulted him, causing serious injuries before abandoning him at the scene.

Mahash had intended to request an extension of the officers' arrest, but was reportedly prevented from doing so because the Prison Service (Shabas) did not have suitable facilities to hold uniformed detainees separately. Shabas stated they have only two such designated cells and offered Mahash these options, but Mahash insisted on holding the officers in complete isolation from each other, which Shabas could not accommodate.

Initially, the police had claimed that the officers approached the man following a complaint from two women about harassment. They stated that when he refused to move away and avoid contact, he was arrested and taken to a patrol car, and subsequently released at his request after the purpose of the arrest was fulfilled. At the time of the initial documentation's publication, police also claimed that an investigation's findings did not align with allegations of violent conduct by the officers. However, the officers have now been arrested, some of whom reportedly served as combatants on October 7th.