A soldier in the Nahal Brigade who wore the patch on his uniform depicting the Messiah logo, associated with the Chabad-Lubavitch hassidic movement, was sentenced to 30 days in military prison on Wednesday after Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir noticed him at a guard post during a tour of Judea and Samaria and ordered him to stand trial.
The platoon commander was sentenced to 14 days' probation, the company commander received an official reprimand, and the battalion commander received a citation.
The soldiers were briefed ahead of the Chief of Staff's expected visit, and despite this, "they behaved in a manner that was inconsistent with expectations and did not comply with rules of discipline." The brigade commander met with the entire chain of command in the brigade regarding operational discipline.
"We must see that we, as commanders, meet the norms that we expect of our subordinates, who watch us and expect us to pave their paths," the Chief of Staff told the commanders.
According to Zamir, “The justice of our path is based on the spirit and values of the Israel Defense Forces, and they are an inseparable part of victory. We are a victorious army, a disciplined army that upholds its values and norms is a victorious army."
Last month, the IDF chief of staff held a conference with senior military officials and presented examples of unusual incidents he had encountered in the field, including the use of various symbols. He reportedly said that the patch in question constitutes “a rebellion against IDF values."