Israel’s president pardons soldier who killed wounded Palestinian in 2016
Summary
Israeli President Isaac Herzog has cleared the criminal record of Elor Azaria, a former soldier convicted of killing a wounded Palestinian in 2016. Despite opposition from Israel’s military leaders, the president said the pardon was based on Azaria serving his sentence and expressed remorse.Key Facts
- Elor Azaria was convicted of manslaughter for shooting Abdel Fattah al-Sharif, a wounded Palestinian, in Hebron in 2016.
- Azaria was an army medic who shot al-Sharif after he had already been wounded and was lying on the ground.
- He was sentenced to 18 months in prison, later reduced to 14 months, and served nine months before release.
- Israeli President Herzog shortened the erasure period of Azaria’s record, effectively pardoning him.
- The military opposed the pardon, citing Azaria’s lack of remorse.
- The pardon was granted following a request from Defence Minister Israel Katz and was made in the spirit of the Jewish Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur.
- The United Nations and Palestinian officials criticized the original conviction and sentence as too lenient or unjust.
- The U.S. government barred Azaria and his family from entering the United States, citing the case as an extrajudicial killing.
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