Israeli soldier who kidnapped Palestinian for ransom 'under investigation'

Israel's military said Sunday it had launched an investigation into a soldier who reportedly fabricated a kidnapping of a Palestinian detainee and demanded ransom from his family.

The Palestinian man had been detained at a holding facility when a military police guard photographed him and sent the image to his family, falsely claiming he had been kidnapped, the Times of Israel reported.

In a separate report, Israeli Army Radio said the soldier demanded the family transfer money in exchange for his release.

Confirming the case to AFP, the military said an investigation had been launched but declined to provide details.

"Following the incident, an inquiry has been opened by the Internal Inquiry Unit," it said in a statement.

"We will not provide details of the inquiry while it is ongoing."

The Palestinian had been detained while attempting to enter Israel from the occupied West Bank, the Times of Israel said.

Israeli security officials say a significant number of Palestinians from the West Bank attempt to enter Israel "illegally," often by climbing over a barrier separating Jerusalem from the Palestinian territory.

The barrier, often referred to as Israel's 'Apartheid Wall', cuts into many parts of the West Bank and encroaches on Palestinian land. Israel has occupied the territory, along with East Jerusalem, since 1967.

Palestinians who try to cross the wall into Israel are driven largely by economic hardship made worse by Israel's occupation and military raids, which can see towns besieged for days or weeks at a time.

Israel has largely stopped issuing work permits for West Bank Palestinians since the start of the Gaza war. Most of those who try to cross the barrier are arrested, while some have died or been injured fleeing from Israeli forces, Palestinian officials say.

An Israeli parliamentary committee said in October that around 6,000 Palestinians attempted to enter Israel in this way last year, with about 5,300 arrested.

Since the start of the Gaza war in October 2023, Israeli violence in the West Bank has killed more than a thousand Palestinians and injured thousands more.