Two Israeli soldiers accused of raping a Palestinian detainee were met with applause and cheers as they arrived at the Supreme Court in Jerusalem on Monday. Supporters in the courtroom shouted, “We are all Unit 100,” referencing the military unit to which the suspects belong. Footage shared on social media showed the two men, their faces concealed, embracing each other as some in the room applauded. The hearing focused on a dispute over who should lead the investigation into the leak of a video showing their assault on a Palestinian detainee last year. The case has sparked significant controversy, particularly after revelations implicated the army’s former chief legal adviser, Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi, in the leak of the footage to Channel 12. Tomer-Yerushalmi resigned shortly after the scandal broke and was subsequently arrested by Israeli police. A rift has since emerged between Justice Minister Yariv Levin and Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara over who should head the probe into the leak. Levin has sought to appoint his own legal adviser, while Baharav-Miara insists the case should remain under the state prosecution’s authority. The two guards are among five members of Unit 100 charged with aggravated assault of a Palestinian prisoner. The leaked video shows several soldiers beating a Palestinian man lying helpless on the ground before dragging him aside and gang-raping him behind riot shields. The detainee was later hospitalized with severe internal injuries and rectal trauma, requiring multiple surgeries. Although the military prosecution initially considered rape charges, they were ultimately dropped from the indictment. The trial of the five guards is being held before a military court. Guards from Unit 100, stationed at the notorious Sde Teiman detention camp, have claimed the investigation against them is a ‘smear campaign.’ One guard told Channel 7, ‘The injustice done to us is obvious to the people of Israel. We came to serve the people and the state with dedication, and now, in these crazy days, we find ourselves defamed by those who were supposed to protect us.’ Last week, one of the suspects’ lawyers argued that the case against them should be dropped, stating, ‘The very least that must be done is to immediately cancel the trial and prosecute all those who took part, turned a blind eye, or lent a hand to this travesty.’ According to the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights, Palestinian detainees held in Israeli facilities have been subjected to systematic torture, including rape, forced stripping, filmed assaults, sexual abuse using objects and dogs, and psychological humiliation. Last month, dozens of Palestinian bodies returned by Israel as part of a ceasefire agreement showed signs of abuse and torture, with some originating from Sde Teiman.