How Yitzhak Amit Buried the Military Advocate General Affair? | Moshe Cohen-Eliya

Prof. Moshe Cohen-Eliya accuses Supreme Court President Yitzhak Amit of burying the affair of the leaked video from Field Thimen, using procedural manipulations that prevented external oversight of the investigation. The column describes how Amit froze and disqualified judicial appointments, and opened an additional discussion on the Boaron doctrine, presenting these moves as part of a struggle to preserve the power structure.

The column by Prof. Moshe Cohen-Eliya, an expert in constitutional law and founder of the 'Masad Ha'aretz' institute, claims that Supreme Court President Yitzhak Amit is working to bury the affair of the leaked video from Field Thimen, in which reserve soldiers were seen committing a severe sexual act on a security detainee. The video was distributed worldwide and caused reputational damage to Israel. The former Military Advocate General, Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi, admitted that she authorized the leak, leading to suspicion of false reporting to the High Court. The column describes how Amit, who was appointed in a controversial process, froze the appointment of retired judge Yosef Ben-Hamo to oversee the investigation, and later disqualified him, thereby preventing the implementation of the Boaron doctrine. Subsequently, he accepted requests for an additional hearing on questions at the heart of the doctrine, opening the possibility to narrow or reverse it. This week, the legal advisor to the Ministry of Justice, Yael Kotik, removed the impediment of State Attorney Amit Isman, and the petition reached a panel where Amit and Khabov were the majority, and they refused to intervene. The column accuses Amit of using procedural tools to protect the old power structure, and warns that burying the doctrine will signal that gatekeepers are not subject to oversight.