Israeli soldier investigated in Brazil gives interview about the case

The Israeli soldier whose vacation in Brazil was interrupted amid an investigation into alleged “war crimes” gave his first interview after returning to Israel.

The 21-year-old soldier was denounced by the Hind Rajab Foundation, a pro-Palestinian NGO that has mobilized to prosecute Israeli soldiers around the world.

He was one of the survivors of the Hamas massacre at the Super Nova music festival and served in the Tzabar Battalion, of the Givati ​​Brigade, of the Israeli Army, as a reservist.

After being released from military service, the soldier decided to take a trip he had planned for years to Brazil with three friends, according to Israeli broadcaster Kan.

Once in the country, he received a series of messages and phone calls, including from family members and the Israeli consulate, communicating about the opening of an investigation into the alleged crimes.

On Saturday (4), the day he learned about the action, he left Brazil with his friends towards Argentina and then the United States, with the help of the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Already in Israeli territory, the 21-year-old soldier stated that he “would never return to Brazil” after the traumatizing episode.

“I will not forget the difficult experience I went through,” he said, “however, it will not break me, I am strong,” he told the broadcaster.

The soldier stated that the vacation trip to Brazil was a “dream”. He was in Bahia when he had to leave the country in a hurry.

“I was in the best place of my life with my friends, I thanked God for every moment there. Then, everything changed on January 4th,” he said.

The soldier reported that the complaint accused him of killing thousands of children. “They wrote that I murdered thousands of children and turned it into a 500-page document. All there was there was a photo of me in uniform in Gaza,” he said, referring to the 500-page document filed against him in the country.

The Hind Rajab Foundation (HRF), which supports Palestinians, requested the opening of a criminal complaint against him in late December.

The soldier also said in the interview that, now, he just hopes to “get off the radar” of the organizations that denounce him and “get on with his life.” Being forced to flee Brazil “was like taking a bullet to the heart,” he said.