The former Israeli vice-consul in Rio de Janeiro Aryeh Sher, has been barred from holding any post in a diplomatic mission for five years in wake of a scandal involving nude photographs of underage girls, the foreign ministry announced Friday.
He had already been recalled and suspended in July when the case was reported in the Brazilian press.
Sher also received a reprimand from an internal commission, which investigated the case.
The commission cleared him of allegations that he had "encouraged underage girls to have their photos taken in the nude," the Israeli Itim news agency reported.
However, it said his conduct had "deviated from the norms which a diplomat should follow," and did not rule out further punishment if the inquiry currently underway in Brazil provides more evidence against him.
The Brazilian police have already arrested one of Sher's friends and his presumed accomplice.
The diplomat apologised to his superiors. He admitted photographing young women, but maintained he did not know they were under 18 -- OCCUPIED JERUSALEM (AFP)
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