Israel’s president pardons IDF soldier who killed disarmed Palestinian terrorist

A soldier whose case divided Israeli public opinion after he was caught on camera shooting dead a disarmed Palestinian terrorist has been pardoned by President Herzog, despite the IDF making it clear that they did not support the move.

Sergeant Elor Azariah was convicted of manslaughter in 2017, after an incident in which two Palestinians, Abdul Fatah al-Sharif and Ramzi Aziz al-Qasrawi, stabbed an Israeli soldier in Hebron, wounding him. IDF Troops subsequently opened fire on the knifemen, killing Qasrawi and wounding Sharif. Subsequent video footage showed Sharif lying on the ground, with Azariah then shooting him in the head from a few metres away, killing him.

Despite a number of right wing Israeli politicians publicly supporting Azaria, the senior echelons of the IDF condemned his actions. At the trial, the prosecution described Azaria as having “violated the rules of engagement without operational justification, as the terrorist was lying on the ground wounded and represented no immediate threat for the accused or others who were present”.

Azaria’s attempt to argue that he had shot Sharif in the belief that the Palestinian was wearing an explosive vest was rejected by the military judges who heard the case, who noted evidence from another soldier in the unit that Azaria had described how Sharif deserved for die for having injured and tried to kill his friend. While Azaria’s family bitterly criticised the guilty verdict, family members of the slain terrorist condemned the decision to try the former IDF soldier for manslaughter rather than murder. Azaria was sentenced to 18 months in prison, and was released on parole after nine months.

Azaria’s criminal record was set to be expunged in 2032, but in July he repeated his request for a pardon, citing the adverse effect his criminal record was having on employment opportunities. A number of high profile Israeli politicians, including Defence Minister Israel Katz, backed the pardon. It is understood that the IDF’s Chief of Staff, Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir and other top officers had written to Katz saying that they did not support the request for a pardon, although they had not contacted Herzog’s office to say the same.

A statement released by President Herzog’s office said that he had considered a number of circumstances relating to the pardon, including that “the statute of limitations on the crime committed has long passed…the significant period of time that has passed since the incident…[and] personal and family circumstances that have changed during the years.”

The statement went on to say that “Azaria stated clearly that he respects the ethical code of the IDF and that it is of importance to him, and that today, as a father of two small children, he wishes to educate them in accordance with these values.

“In his request, he expressed his sorrow, including with regard to the grave consequences of the incident. It is noted that in his first request to President [Reuven] Rivlin, he acknowledged that, in retrospect alone, the shot fired was an operational error, and in retrospect he would not have carried it out.

“In the spirit of the upcoming Day of Atonement and after many years living with the consequences of his actions, President Herzog has decided that the circumstances, the length of time that passed, and the sorrow Azaria has expressed justify enabling him to be allowed to begin a new chapter in his life.”