A border cop convicted of assaulting a Palestinian woman in 2023 has received a police certificate of merit ahead of Independence Day, Hebrew-language media reported Monday.

Oriane Ben Kalifa was found guilty of assault after she was filmed shoving Hala Salim, a Palestinian resident of East Jerusalem, at a checkpoint in the Old City, and pulling the her hijab from her hair, as well as choking and shaking her.

Despite the conviction, Ben Kalifa was allowed to rejoin the Border Police a week after the court’s ruling, in a decision authorized by far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir and then-police commissioner Kobi Shabtai.

Certificates of merit within the police force are issued to officers annually by higher-ranking cops to mark Independence Day.

The certificate hailed Ben Kalifa as a “highly motivated” police officer who “carries out her role exceptionally with a sense of full dedication, demonstrating responsibility, knowledge, the ability to take control and creativity.”

It was signed by Supt. Haim Amar, who heads the “Rotem” branch in the Border Police’s Internal Security Division, and Cdr. Eli Abutbul,........

© The Times of Israel