Israel divided over manslaughter conviction
The rare manslaughter conviction on Wednesday of an Israeli soldier who fatally shot a badly wounded Palestinian attacker exposed a deepening rift between proponents of the rule of law and a burgeoning nationalist movement.
The military court verdict against Sergeant Elor Azaria marked a victory for commanders seeking to preserve a code of ethics, but it also brought calls for a pardon from prominent hard-line politicians, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who expressed sympathy for the soldier or depicted him as the victim of a detached elite.
In a statement on Facebook, Netanyahu urged the public to “act responsibly” toward the military, Israel’s most respected institution.
“We have one army that is the basis for our existence. IDF soldiers are our sons and daughters, and they must remain above all disputes,” he said. But making no direct mention of the military court, he said: “I support granting a pardon to Elor Azaria.”
Since the March shooting, the military leadership has come under unprecedented criticism, as members of Netanyahu’s coalition accused top generals of abandoning a serviceman on the battlefield. The uproar helped fuel the resignation of Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon, who staunchly defended the army from the assault from within.
Azaria, an army medic, was caught on video by a human rights worker fatally shooting Abdel Fattah al-Sharif, a wounded Palestinian attacker who had stabbed a soldier in the West Bank city of Hebron. Sharif was on the ground, unarmed and virtually motionless, when Azaria fired a single bullet in his head as other soldiers milled about.
‘Unbecoming’ actions
Azaria’s supporters said he fired in self-defense. But his detractors, including senior military commanders, have said his actions were unbecoming of a soldier.
Palestinians and rights groups praised the verdict, but called it an anomaly, given the many other questionable shootings that have gone untried.
Yusuf Mahmoud, spokesman for the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank, said the conviction “proved the sincerity of the Palestinian narrative and the lies of the Israeli narrative”.
Azaria is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan 15 and could face up to 20 years in prison, though he is expected to receive less than that. Netanyahu’s call for a pardon fueled what will be a heated debate over whether Azaria deserves leniency.
Under the law, only Israel’s largely ceremonial president can issue a pardon. President Reuven Rivlin’s office said he would decide only after the legal process, including an expected appeal, runs its course.