Israeli court acquits officer of journalist assault citing '7 October PTSD'

An Israeli court has acquitted an officer of assaulting a Palestinian photojournalist, citing post-traumatic stress disorder from the 7 October attacks. The Jerusalem Magistrate Court overturned the conviction of officer Yitzhak Sofer, who was filmed beating Anadolu Agency reporter Mustafa Alkharouf in occupied East Jerusalem in December 2023. Despite video evidence and an initial conviction, the judge accepted the officer's appeal due to his PTSD diagnosis. The conviction was replaced with a sentence of 300 hours of community service.