In Israel, it seems that much more than a constable's blunder recently led to the dismissal of war crimes charges in the most controversial attempt to hold soldiers accountable for alleged war crimes during the Israel v. Gaza War. To wit, "Israel's military on Thursday said it was dropping charges against five soldiers accused of beating and sexually abusing a Palestinian detainee in an alleged assault partially caught on camera."
Prior to this dismissal, there was extraordinary public pressure (plus that from hardliners within the Netanyahu government and seemingly the prime minister himself) to ignore and thereby condone the disturbing detainee sexual abuse allegedly committed -- and captured on camera -- by five IDF troops on Palestinian prisoners at Sde Teiman prison.
During this uproar, in response to pressure to ignore Israel's obligations under the law of war to investigate and hold soldiers accountable for war crimes, the top IDF military lawyer (MAG) leaked the video of the abuse (action she later admitted to), leading to her arrest for obstruction of justice (an Orwellian twist, given that it appears she was one of the courageous few actually pursuing justice).
Hence Cardozo's observation that the "criminal goes free" has seemingly come to pass regarding the recent dismissal of indictments as reported here, further straining the IDF's reputation as law-abiding. This entire saga is one that demands deep attention, as it reveals dynamics that echo in the US as well as other nations, pitting those who excuse criminality by warfighters against those that understand that crimes such as detainee abuse (besides being inherently wrong) are morally corrosive to one's armed forces, and can sabotage long-term peace.
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