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| - FACT CHECK: No, Image Does Not Show Ukrainian Female Recruit Who Joined The Israeli Army
An image shared on X purports to show a Ukrainian female recruit who joined the Israeli army and was allegedly raped by four soldiers from the Yalam Brigade.
#Raped :
Ukrainian recruit Maria Kharchev came to fight in the ranks of the Israeli army and joined the Yelam Brigade. Instead of being rewarded, she was raped by 4 Israeli soldiers from the Yalam Brigade and then imprisoned for a week so that they would not be exposed. pic.twitter.com/MHCuLHGtk6
— IDF Death and Destruction Count Team (@deathofficialc) March 15, 2024
Verdict: False
The claim is false, as the image appears in a 2014 International Business Times article and shows a female soldier from the Caracal Battalion. A spokesperson for the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) denied the claim’s validity in an email to Check Your Fact.
Fact Check:
Back in January, Roya News reported an Israeli soldier was arrested for allegedly raping a female comrade, citing the Israeli Broadcasting Authority. The alleged incident occurred while the soldiers were on duty in the Gaza Strip during the “early weeks” of the current Israel-Hamas War, according to Roya News.
“#Raped: Ukrainian recruit Maria Kharchev came to fight in the ranks of the Israeli army and joined the Yelam Brigade. Instead of being rewarded, she was raped by 4 Israeli soldiers from the Yalam Brigade and then imprisoned for a week so that they would not be exposed,” the X image’s caption reads. The image has been viewed over 3,000 times as of writing. A subsequent post also claims the soldier sustained injuries as a result of the purported assault.
The claim is false, however. Using a reverse image search, Check Your Fact traced the image to a 2014 International Business Times article, which shows a female soldier from the Caracal Battalion.
“An Israeli soldier from the Caracal battalion stands among backpacks after finishing a 20km march in the Negev desert on May 29, 2014,” the image’s caption reads. The photo credit for the image indicates it originally stems from Reuters. (RELATED: Video Claims To Show Orthodox Jews Leaving Israel To Avoid Conscription)
Likewise, Check Your Fact found no credible news reports to support the claim. In fact, the opposite is true. Misbar also debunked the image via a Mar. 17 article.
Additionally, the claim neither appears on the website for the IDF nor its verified social media accounts. Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense also has not publicly commented on the claim.
A spokesperson for the IDF denied the claim’s validity in an email to Check Your Fact.
“It is fake and no such brigade exists,” the spokesperson said of the claim made via the X image.
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