A soldier who was filmed disrespecting a Christian statue in southern Lebanon several weeks ago was sentenced to 21 days in military detention. His friend, who photographed the incident, will serve 14 days in military prison.
“The IDF views the incident with great severity and respects freedom of religion and worship, as well as holy sites and religious symbols of all religions and communities. Procedures regarding conduct around religious institutions and symbols are regularly emphasized to forces before entering relevant areas," the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit said in a statement.
The image showed a soldier placing a cigarette in the mouth of a statue while smoking nearby.
Last month, international outrage erupted over footage of an Israeli soldier vandalizing a Christian statue in the same village. That soldier was sentenced to 30 days in military detention and removed from combat duty. The fellow soldier who documented the incident received a similar punishment.
According to the military investigation, during an IDF operation in the Christian village of Debel, the soldier involved damaged the statue while another soldier photographed the act and distributed the image. Six additional soldiers were present during the incident and did not act to stop it or report it.