The IDF will end its cooperation with Yatar, a private nonprofit, operating alongside IDF forces, following an investigation by Shomrim and Calcalist. 

Last month, Shomrim published a joint investigation with Calcalist, which found that the Yatar all-terrain vehicle (ATV) unit, which defines itself as “a fully authorized division of the Israeli Defense Force,” is in fact a nonprofit organization which raises millions of shekels a year in donations. The investigation raised questions about the IDF's reliance on a privately funded organization that raised money overseas while operating alongside combat units. 

Following publication of the investigation, the issue was brought to the attention of Deputy Chief of Staff Major General Tamir Yadai and the army is now ending its cooperation with the non-profit. Shomrim has learned that last week the Judea and Samaria Division, which operates in the West Bank, where Yatar had been defined in recent years as its mobility unit, decided to halt activity with the organization, as did the rest of the IDF. 

The IDF Spokesperson initially told Shomrim, in its response to the investigation, that “we are not involved in, and cannot comment on the private activities of a civilian NGO.” Now, however, the IDF has told Shomrim that “as part of an across-the-board cut in reserve personnel throughout the IDF, it was decided to reduce the number of positions in the unit; the scope of the downsizing is under review.”

IDF sources told Shomrim that contrary to military directives and the decision of the deputy chief of staff, some of the vehicles remained with the division based in the Jordan Valley and were moved to the Golan Heights in recent days. 

An annual turnover of around $3.3 Million 

Shomrim’s investigation from June revealed that Yatar - the Hebrew acronym for “Tactical Vehicle Unit” – is actually a non-profit organization established around a decade ago by Tzuriel Raviv, with paid officials and a fundraising apparatus that operates mostly overseas. The non-profit ended 2023 with annual donations of 7.5 million shekels (about $2.5 million). In 2024, the last year for which reporting is currently available, Yatar’s annual turnover had risen to about 9.8 million shekels (about $3.2 million). The investigation also revealed that over the past three years, the non-profit has allegedly been functioning as a de facto IDF unit.

Alongside its military activities, the non-profit also conducts tours for VIP donors in sensitive parts of the country. Shomrim is aware of at least four such tours that Yatar conducted, mainly for donors from the United States, on the Gaza and Syrian borders in 2024 and 2025 – all of them using vehicles belonging to the unit.

The next stop: Israel Police?

While the IDF may have ended its cooperation with Yatar, Shomrim understands that Raviv is currently working on strengthening the non-profit’s ties with the Israel Police. In this context, it is worth noting that Raviv has a criminal record, after he was convicted of forgery and fraud in 2000.

As reported in the Shomrim investigation, the door to the police was opened for Raviv by former police commissioner Kobi Shabtai, who was head of the Border Police at the time. However, the police’s legal advisor at the time ended cooperation with Yatar. “They were put on hold because of an issue with their permits,” Shabtai told Shomrim. “They suspended them, but later reinstated their authorization.”

Now that it has been cut from the IDF, will Yatar return to the fold of the Israel Police? If Raviv’s ties with National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir – who just this past February designated the non-profit a “national rescue unit” – are any indication, it very well might.

The Israel Police gave the following response: “Yatar personnel are full-fledged Israel Police volunteers who operate under the authority granted to them as part of their volunteer service with the Israel Police.

“As a rescue unit recognized by the National Security Ministry, the unit serves during its operations to assist the Israel Police in emergencies, similar to other rescue bodies operating in the State of Israel.”

The police did not respond to Shomrim’s questions about Raviv’s criminal record.

Raviv did not respond to requests for comment.