JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli police on Sunday said they were opening an investigation into sexual abuse allegations against the former head of Israel’s renowned ZAKA rescue service.
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Police said the elite Lahav 433 unit, responsible for investigating major crimes and corruption, would handle the case involving Yehuda Meshi-Zahav.
Meshi-Zahav has been a well-known figure in Israel for decades. ZAKA became internationally known in the 1990s when it responded to a wave of attacks by Palestinian militants, by helping first responders and cleaning up human remains in line with Jewish law.
As the head of the ultra-Orthodox organization, Meshi-Zahav was widely seen as a bridge between Israel’s religious and secular Jewish communities. Early this month, he was awarded the Israel Prize, the country’s highest honor, for lifetime achievement.
But on Friday, Meshi-Zahav stepped down from ZAKA and relinquished his prestigious prize after the Israeli newspaper Haaretz said it had interviewed six accusers and obtained evidence of sexual assault and exploitation going back decades. The cases allegedly included teenagers and younger children.
Meshi-Zahav has denied the allegations, but on Sunday more accusers came forward with tales of alleged abuse by him.
One man, identified only by his first initial “D,” told Channel 13 TV that he was abused by Meshi-Zahav for three years beginning when he was 11. Now in his mid-20s, he said he had been assaulted “dozens, if not hundreds” of times and that it was well known there were other victims.
No NYS governor is not politically being attacked. You forgot he is responsible for over 15,000 elderly deaths as well. So please don’t put him in same category
Read his former wife’s story about his behavior
The “Eida” has hated him since day one because he helps the “Tziyonim”. Even more so now. After his parents & brother died from COVID, he came out with a scathing attack against the chareidi community and the way they’ve been acting in the pandemic.
Not to mention the Israel Prize.
He himself said that he’s gotten death threats, verbal & physical threats in the street over the years/
Wouldn’t surprise me if they set him up.
Probably being accused like Judge Kavanagh and Andrew Cuomo.
Politics here :
Uh while the timing is probably politically motivated (with the Israel Prize nomination) the accusations themselves probably are not
There have been rumors about him in j’lem since my dad was a kid and he’s in his 50’s
The real question was how did he get away with it unti now