Deputy Military Advocate-General Brig.-Gen. Gal Asael allegedly covered up the source of the Sde Teiman leak during the probe, Israeli public broadcaster KAN News reported on Sunday evening.
According to KAN, Asael reportedly received an indication of the leak's source but "did not summon any of the relevant officers to testify," including the officer who broke the story to the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) and underwent a polygraph test at its request.
Although Asael claimed that the steps he took during the probe were conducted with full prosecution oversight, KAN reported that Israel Police suspect he did not disclose all information in his possession.
Levin asks court to mull Sde Teiman investigator pick, says 'deadlock' reached
Justice Minister Yariv Levin informed the High Court of Justice on Tuesday that he has failed to find a candidate accepted by the court to lead the investigation into the leak of the Sde Teiman detention facility video and the alleged obstruction of justice that followed, saying he has reached a “deadlock” under the criteria set by the justices.
In his filing, Levin asked the court to reconsider its earlier decision to disqualify retired district court judge Asher Kula from serving as the judicial complaints investigator in the case, arguing that no viable alternative has emerged that satisfies both the court’s conditions and the institutional constraints surrounding the probe.
The investigation centers on former military advocate general Maj.-Gen. (res.) Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi, who resigned after admitting that she authorized the leak of a video broadcast by Channel 12 showing the alleged abuse of a Palestinian detainee at the Sde Teiman detention facility.
The probe examines not only the leak itself, but also suspicions of obstruction of justice and the handling of the internal inquiry that followed.
Sarah Ben-Nun contributed to this report.