Israel police unit chief questioned for abuse of pro-democracy protesters 

The leader of a special police unit in Israel and four other officers facing allegations of using excessive force against protesters expressing their opposition to the government’s judicial overhaul plan, were called in for questioning yesterday by the Justice Ministry.

According to the Times of Israel, Chief Superintendent Yair Hanuna, who heads the Tel Aviv police’s Yasam special patrol unit, is among those accused of mistreating demonstrators during the mass protests that took place last week.

Hundreds of thousands of Israelis participated in demonstrations at dozens of points across the country, including Tel Aviv, West Jerusalem, Haifa, Birussebi, Herzliya and Rehovot after Israel’s parliament approved an initial bill to limit the Supreme Court’s powers.

The Police Internal Investigations Department (PIID) of the Justice Ministry is currently conducting an inquiry into the officers’ actions during the protest.

Hanuna has faced several complaints from protesters, one of which accuses him of breaking a demonstrator’s nose during a rally in Tel Aviv.

Widely circulated images and videos showed Hanuna punching teenager Amitai Aboudi, despite the 18-year-old already being handcuffed. As a result of this incident, the teenager’s family filed a direct complaint against Hanuna with the PIID.

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Another incident being investigated revolves around a protester named Uri, who was apprehended by Hanuna three weeks ago.

According to Uri’s account, Hanuna forcefully brought him down to the ground, pressing his knee against Uri’s neck while using offensive language. During the incident, Uri felt that his nose was broken, but Hanuna denied him medical assistance as his nose continued to bleed.

Subsequently, Uri was examined by a medic, who confirmed that his nose was indeed broken.

In response, Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir supported the officers and condemned the PIID’s intention to question the Tel Aviv Yasam commander as a “threat against an outstanding officer who acted to enforce the law with determination.”

Hanuna and the four other officers are scheduled to undergo questioning tomorrow at the PIID headquarters in Tel Aviv.