Defense Minister Benny Gantz announced Monday that he plans to bar the service of female soldiers in the Israel Prison Service.
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As part of the IDF's collaboration with other security forces, soldiers are routinely embedded with the Border Police, Israel Police and the IPS as part of their mandatory service.
However, the investigation into the September 2021 escape of six high-profile terrorists from the Gilboa maximum security prison in northern Israel revealed that, among other things, female soldiers assigned to Gilboa as wardens were sexually abused by inmates while their superiors turned a blind eye to "keep the peace" inside the prison.
Last week, another victim came forward, saying she was repeatedly sexually assaulted by a high-profile terrorist at Gilboa Prison.
Prime Minister Yair Lapid has vowed to investigate the claims and ensure "this never happens again," and several lawmakers have called on the State Attorney's Office to launch an investigation into the case.
Monday saw Gantz send a letter to Public Security Minister Omer Barlev, demanding he immediately pulls all the female soldiers serving with the IPS out of facilities holding security prisoners. Gantz also said he will halt the practice of embedding soldiers with the Prison Service pending a "full and comprehensive investigation of the case."
"I believe that serving in a role that includes dealing with security prisoners daily requires the appropriate training as well as comprehensive knowledge of the IPS," the defense minister wrote.
"The issue of whether IDF conscripts should handle this role should be revisited, and the conditions under which it can be performed – as well as the measures that can be taken to ensure the soldiers' safety – must be reviewed."
The defense establishment "is committed to sparing no effort to ensure the safety of all IDF personnel, regardless of where they serve," Gantz said, adding, "I have instructed the professional echelon at the Defense Ministry and the military to team with their counterparts at the Public Security Ministry and review the orders allowing IDF conscripts to serve with the Israel Prison Service."
Hagit Peer, head of the Na'amat women's organization, said, "While the decision is the immediate and appropriate solution, is it sad that we have come to a situation where women have to be removed from the sphere so they don't get hurt.
"The various condemnations fail to impress because only one thing can be done right now – form an independent commission of inquiry to investigate this horrendous failure, which includes suspicions of an outrageous cover-up by senior officials within the system."
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