IDF probes huge sex scandal

[Scurrilous]

Cleared for publication at Ynet's request: 35 soldiers at Air Force base suspected of raping, sexually assaulting 14-year-old girl; IDF officials: We're talking about grave events taking place inside a military base

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3245593,00.html

<snip>

"Dozens of soldiers are suspected of raping and committing other sexual offences against a 14-year-old girl.

The alleged crimes were apparently committed for over a year and started when the girl was 13. Dozens of suspects were questioned over the shocking affair in recent weeks by Military Police and Israel Police investigators."

<snip>

"Meanwhile, army officials told Ynet the events in question are grave.

"It's even more severe because it happened inside a military base, and the way it looks now we'll be serving indictments against many involved in the affair," one IDF source said.

Overall, 35 soldiers serving at the base are suspected of having sex with the girl during the past year. The affair first came to light about a month ago and prompted the probe."

[Ecumenist]

1. This is unbelievable and downright disgusting

why is it alright to have sex with a 17 or 18 year old by mulitple men? Let's not even talk about the fact that she was only 13 or 14. That almost immaterial when one thinks about what was happening for a year, for crying out loud and how in the world did this get past the parents?

[Scurrilous]

6. It gets worse.

Apparently she was only 11 years old when the abuse started.

"It's being described as the worst sexual abuse scandal in the army's history. At least 17 Israeli soldiers are under investigation in the statutory rape of an 11-year-old girl who lived with her family on an air force base in southern Israel.

Defense lawyers say the girl lied to the soldiers about her age, claiming she was older, and the sex was consensual.

The case marks a new low for the military, once Israel's most revered institution but tarnished in recent years by financial corruption and sexual misconduct."

<snip>

"According to media reports, the girl, now 14, told military investigators the sex was consensual and she had lied to the soldiers about her age. Some soldiers involved told investigators the girl claimed to be 16, and they had no idea she had yet to reach her 12th birthday."

http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=1910231

[Ecumenist]

7. OH MY GOD!!

These soldiers need to be castrated. I hate it when I hear that all too common excuse, "She told she was 16, 17, 18- or she didn't look 7, 8, 9, 10, 11. I think that to say this is sick doesn't even approach the depravity... I am just speechless.. If this was something going on for that period of time and she became the well known equivalent of the "base blow up doll", how is it that noone either within the family or a concernedfriend of the family say something or initiate some sort of iniquiry LONG BEFORE NOW??!!

[Poll_Blind]

2. The over-militarization, the over-masculinization of a nation...

...will do this every time. It has ravaged the U.S., Israel and any other country which follows those practices.

PB

[eyl]

3. What, you're saying other countries

don't have incidents of mass rape?

Despicable as this affair is, it's really a stretch to blame it on "militarization" (at least beyond the fact that a lower level of "militaryness" might mean the perpetrators would not have had the locale available or maybe not met each other, but that's an even greater reach)

[ShalachEtAmi]

4. `The U.N. Sex Scandal `

`LAST MONTH A CLASSIFIED UNITED Nations report prompted Secretary General Kofi Annan to admit that U.N. peacekeepers and staff have sexually abused or exploited war refugees in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The worst of the 150 or so allegations of misconduct--some of them captured on videotape--include pedophilia, rape, and prostitution. While a U.N. investigation into the scandal continues, the organization has just suspended two more peacekeepers in neighboring Burundi over similar charges. The revelations come three years after another U.N. report found "widespread" evidence of sexual abuse of West African refugees.`



http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/005/081zxelz.asp




Yep it sure happens with lots of other countries...

[Englander]

8. Re, the Weekly Standard,

You realise that's a rw rag?

'A Higher Standard
The Weekly at 10: Sometimes Wrong but Always Right

By Peter Carlson
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, August 30, 2005; C01

Some left-wingers probably don't read the Weekly Standard because they figure it's a Rupert Murdoch-owned, right-wing, warmongering magazine and, of course, they've got a point. But now -- as the Washington-based mag prepares to celebrate its 10th anniversary -- it's worth noting that the Weekly Standard is a truly excellent right-wing warmongering magazine, no matter what your political persuasion might be.

The Standard is saved from the worst sins of ideological magazines -- crankiness, sectarianism and self-righteousness -- by a delightfully impish sense of humor. It is America's funniest right-wing magazine, although there is not, alas, much competition for that title.

The Weekly Standard was founded in September 1995 by William Kristol, the son of neoconservative intellectual Irving Kristol and a former aide to Dan Quayle when he was vice president. It's a magazine of ideas -- bold ideas, brilliant ideas and occasionally truly awful ideas.

Without a doubt, the most important idea yet advanced by the Standard came in the essay "Saddam Must Go," written by Kristol and Robert Kagan and published in November 1997. The idea was: Hey, let's invade Iraq, conquer Baghdad and overthrow Saddam Hussein for expelling American weapons inspectors.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/08/29/AR2005082902109_pf.html

[ShalachEtAmi]

9. Well try google UN sex scandal and pick from the other 100 articles...

[Englander]

11. Why? All the articles will be by rw wingnuts.

So, what do you think about the Weekly Standard, I notice you've completely ignored the point I
was making.

[ShalachEtAmi]

12. Is the BBC a `right wing rag` ? :)

``UN peacekeepers accused of sexual offences should face legal action in their home countries, a new UN report has recommended.
The report follows allegations of serious misconduct by members of the UN mission in DR Congo.

UN peacekeepers have been accused of using food and money to pay for sex with girls as young as 12. ``

MORE / http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/4379971.stm




Yep it sure happens with lots of other countries...




(Your 2nd `point`: `So, what do you think about the Weekly Standard, I notice you've completely ignored the point I
was making. ` yeppers ``I never looked there``)

[Englander]

13. I think you're completely missing the point, here.

The point is that the Weekly Standard is a rw opinion-piece, the red herring about the BBC
doesn't change that *fact*, it only confirms my earlier comment, that you're missing the point,
for whatever reason, & are ignoring the issue of the rw pov of the magazine. I'm not greatly
concerned about the subject, as was made clear, in the title of the post;

--Re, (regarding) the Weekly Standard,--

All I'm concerned about is the source your using, I don't find it acceptable to use as a credible
source. It appears that you do, or don't think that it's a rw rag, is that correct? The rhetorical
question used, & the red herring about the BBC indicates that, again, you're ignoring the point I
was making.

[Name removed]

14. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[ShalachEtAmi]

15. The source is completely irrelevant here as its in multiple medias

such as the BBC , as I demonstrated so brilliantly...

The source was not important at all to this discussion (talk about red herrings )

The message was...and I did very well in transmitting that message cross referenced to multiple sources,most of them progressive sources..

Well done me....



:bounce:

[Violet_Crumble]

18. This is the I/P forum, not 'lots of other countries' forum...

*yawn*

[ShalachEtAmi]

10. To quote a veteran poster on this forum `HEY LOOK THERE`

[Violet_Crumble]

17. You must be thinking of some other forum...

I've been here a long time and I've never seen anyone say `HEY LOOK THERE`. Maybe yr thinking of some other forum where you've actually been around for more than a week or so to notice what veteran posters say?

Violet...

[ShalachEtAmi]

19. The nice thing about DU is a person could of been reading the forum ..

...for quite a while before joining and get to know the gist of it and familiarize oneself with veteran posters post`s....

[Violet_Crumble]

20. One could have, but it's doubtful...

..especially when no veteran poster has said what you claimed they said....

Violet...

[ShalachEtAmi]

24. OK if someones been a member longer than I have ,they probably know better

[Violet_Crumble]

27. Change that to they do know better...

..coz no-one's ever said what you quoted, and I'm not really getting what the point is of creating quotes that have nothing to do with the topic of threads...

Violet...

[pelsar]

5. huh?

over masculinization?

lets see if just google "mass rapes: number of finds: 1,830,000 (obviously this is not absolute)

_________
Ethnic Chinese tell of mass rapes -indonesia

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/events/indonesia/special_report/118576.stm

Sudan: Darfur
http://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=mass+rapes&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8

and it goes on:
congo, rwanda, nepal, sweden, norway, burma, east timor, etc etc etc etc...seems every country in the world has a similar problem....and it remains disgusting, but hardly a result of "over masculinization" (whatever that means)

[Scurrilous]

16. No personal security in Israel

IDF must redefine security in light of sex scandal

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3248551,00.html

<snip>

"The story of rape at the air force base in the south can be added to the long list of incidents of rape and murder of women in Israel. The current instance is not unique to the military; it also happens in schools, on the street, and in private homes.

But the appalling case in question emphasizes, in the most cynical way, the need to redefine the concept of security in Israel.

The rape of a child is but one example of the lack of security Israeli women feel, even at the heart of the most respected "security" apparatus in Israeli society.

At the center of our society is the all-able IDF, with its massive budget and ability to stall any and all civilian discussion by claiming "defense needs." It is this apparatus that has embarrassingly been exposed for using teenage girls, and women in general, as objects – nothing more than sex toys – and as the personal possession of soldiers."

[pelsar]

21. I"ll remember that...

that the women soldier in front of the class giving us older guys a refresher course in mortors, etc is really just our sex toy and that after the class we can all "play with her".

sheesh......we've had a former defense minister lose his job because of "groping"...so much for "forstalling"

is there like no end to sensationalisim? or the posters here who seem to saviour any and all press reports that attempt to show just how horrendous the israeli society and country really is.

i suppose comparing to other countries is out of the question....it might ruin the narration

[Scurrilous]

22. Groping? It was a bit more serious than that.

Israeli Official Is Found Guilty On Sex Charges

http://select.nytimes.com/search/restricted/article?res=F30B1FFD3D580C718EDDAA0894D9404482

<snip>

"Yitzhak Mordechai, a former defense minister and transportation minister, was convicted today of committing ''indecent acts'' against two women subordinates. The court said that Mr. Mordechai had tried to use force to molest the women.

It was the first time that a senior Israeli official had been convicted on such charges. Women's groups called the conviction an important step toward combating sexual harassment, which they say is a common abuse of power here."

<snip>

"Mr. Mordechai, 56, looked pale and thin today as he emerged from a Jerusalem courthouse where he was found guilty of assaulting a female officer who served as his subordinate in the 1990's and of assaulting a political activist when she applied for a job in his defense ministry several years later. The prosecutor portrayed Mr. Mordechai as a politician who compulsively exploited his status to corner women subordinates and force himself on them."

[pelsar]

23. the charge still stands....

is there like no end to sensationalisim? or the posters here who seem to saviour any and all press reports that attempt to show just how horrendous the israeli society and country really is.

_______

i guess i'll go out and buy my daughter a handgun and metal chasity belt......

[Englander]

25. Welfare Ministry 'told IDF about rape on base 2.5 years ago'

By Michal Greenberg

The Social Welfare Ministry said Wednesday that a social worker had informed the army two and a half years ago about the statutory rape of a 12-year-old girl living on an Israel Air Force base, but that the army had said the issue was not its concern.

About 20 soldiers and civilians have been implicated in the statutory rape case at the base, which came to light last week. The girl, now 14, told investigators she had consented to the sexual activity, even though she had been under the legal age of consent.

The ministry said the social worker, in an attempt to clarify the situation, had been transferred from one officer to another until she was told that social services authorities would have to deal with the incident by themselves.

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/714870.html

[Scurrilous]

26. "nobody knew or heard anything.."

"A senior Air Force official characterized the affair as a "conspiracy of silence."

"The affair went on for a long time but nobody knew or heard anything. Nobody also thought of reporting it," he said."

<snip>


"Another officer said that the base's commander, whose name cannot be published for security considerations, was stunned when he first heard about the incidents.

"It took him some time to comprehend the scope of the incidents, the number of those involved, the period of time it went on, and everyone's silence," the officer said."

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3245593,00.html