The trial of security prisoner Mahmoud Atallah, 46, will open on Sunday in the Nazareth District Court for a series of rape, and indecent acts of force against two female soldiers who served as prison guards. This is the second indictment against Atallah, as he has been serving a life sentence plus 15 years in prison for the murder of a Palestinian woman suspected of collaborating with the State of Israel.
In the case known as the “Pimp Affair in the Guardhouse,” the prosecution filed an indictment seven months ago in the Tiberias Magistrate’s Court against the former commander of Gilboa Prison, Bassam Kashkush, and the former prison intelligence officer, Rani Basha, for offenses of breach of trust and failure to fulfill an official duty.
In November 2017, following a complaint filed by a female guard at Gilboa Prison, Atallah was questioned on suspicion of committing indecent acts in prison cells.
At the end of the investigation, the Public Prosecutor’s Office believed there was insufficient evidence to file an indictment against the IPS officers who served in command positions at Gilboa Prison, so the case against them was closed.
In 2020, the Public Prosecutor’s Office filed an indictment against Atallah with the Nazareth Magistrate’s Court for sexual offenses against the three female guards. This case is still pending in court and has not yet been decided.
Following an appeal filed by the three guards against the decision to close the case and following the testimony of the then-commander of Gilboa Prison, Lt. Gen. Freddy Ben-Shtrit, before the government investigation committee into the incident of the prisoners’ escape from Gilboa Prison, State Attorney Amit Isman ordered in December 2021 the resumption of the investigation into all aspects of the affair.
Atallah was set for release in the second hostage deal but was replaced by another prisoner
At the end of the reinvestigation, after examining the facts, the state attorney accepted the appeal and decided to file indictments against Atallah, Kashkush, and Isha.
Atallah’s name was added to the list of security prisoners to be released in the second hostage release deal of the Israel-Hamas War. According to the government’s decision, he was expected to be released to his home in Nablus. Following the re-investigation, he was removed from the list of those being released and replaced by another prisoner.
