Israeli soldier who assaulted photojournalist avoids criminal charges

Israeli authorities stopped short of bringing criminal charges against a soldier who physically assaulted a CNN photojournalist in March, the Israeli army said on Monday.

In a statement to CNN, the army said an internal investigation found that "during the encounter between the Israeli army soldiers and the media crew in the area, physical force was used by one of the soldiers against a photographer from the media organization."

The army said its criminal investigations unit examined the incident, but prosecutors decided against filing charges and referred the case to the military's disciplinary process instead.

It said the soldier "received a formal command reprimand" after expressing remorse for his actions during the disciplinary proceedings. The army did not disclose the identity of the reservist involved.

The investigation was launched after the soldier put CNN photojournalist Cyril Theophilos in a chokehold and forced him to the ground while he was filming in the occupied West Bank village of Tayasir in March, shortly after Israeli settlers established an illegal outpost in the area.

During the incident, Israeli soldiers also detained the CNN crew and pointed their rifles at them. Another soldier, who was filmed telling CNN he wanted "revenge" against Palestinians, was dismissed from the army at the time.

Following the incident, Israeli army chief Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir suspended all operational activities of the battalion. It was redeployed to the occupied West Bank 30 days later after completing additional training and an educational seminar.