Israeli President Isaac Herzog pardoned a soldier who shot and killed an incapacitated Palestinian attacker in the occupied West Bank in 2016, despite opposition from the military’s chief of staff.
Announcing the move on Saturday, Herzog said the decision would allow Elor Azaria, who was in his mandatory military service at the time of the incident, to “continue with his life.” The decision expunges Azaria’s criminal record.
The case divided Israeli society as it risked politicizing the military – even playing a role in the resignation of then-Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon – with many on the right-wing, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, calling for Azaria to receive a pardon.
But the Israeli military made clear at the time that it viewed the shooting as a “grave breach of IDF values, conduct and standards of military operations.” Video of the incident showed Azaria, then serving as a combat medic, approaching a Palestinian man, suspected in a knife attack, before shooting him in the head as he lay injured on the street.
by CNN – Israeli president overrules military to pardon soldier who killed incapacitated Palestinian attacker
