Fresh revelations about the lie-detector test that exposed Military Advocate General Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi’s role in the Sde Teiman affair have shed light on what investigators describe as a deliberate and coordinated effort within the upper ranks of the IDF’s legal division.
The chain of events began when a high-ranking officer underwent a standard Shin Bet polygraph exam as part of her candidacy for promotion. When asked, “Did you commit a crime?” she unexpectedly confessed that she had leaked a video allegedly showing abuse of a captured terrorist — and said she did so under direct instructions from the MAG.
The Shin Bet relayed her confession to Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara and to the police, who promptly launched a criminal probe into the matter.
Last Tuesday, investigators employed a deceptive tactic to gather additional information. Pretending to be someone from another office, one officer called and asked the woman to come to a different location at the Kirya Base. When she showed up, she was promptly detained and transported to police headquarters on Kaplan Street in Tel Aviv for questioning.
During her first interrogation, the officer offered only limited cooperation. Authorities confiscated her phone, released her, and barred her from contacting anyone connected to the investigation.
Two days later, she reached out to police voluntarily, requesting another interrogation. This time, she provided a full account of what had transpired.
According to her statement, she was part of a WhatsApp group that included seven senior officers from the Military Advocate General’s Corps — among them Tomer-Yerushalmi herself. After the Sde Teiman controversy erupted, one participant wrote, “I hope this storm blows over.” Another member lashed out at IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi and military spokesman Daniel Hagari, complaining, “They aren’t defending us here.”
Members of the group debated two potential strategies — holding a discreet press briefing without sharing case files, or selectively leaking the material. Tomer-Yerushalmi dismissed the first option, arguing that “a briefing would not have the same effect,” and declared, “Now we take this into our own hands.”
Once the footage was released, the group felt their move had achieved its intended impact. But when a petition later reached the Supreme Court, the MAG ordered an internal probe to identify the source of the leak — and ironically assigned the very deputy who had helped orchestrate it to lead the investigation.
{Matzav.com}
And she was only imprisoned for 3 days, while those she accused falsely are sitting since last year.