Israeli president overrules military to pardon soldier who killed incapacitated Palestinian attacker

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.

In a statement on X, Ya’alon blasted the decision to issue the pardon. “The soldier did not claim to have shot the terrorist because he felt his life was in danger, but ‘because he deserved to die,’” Ya’alon said. Addressing Herzog directly, he said, “You decided to erase the criminal record without hearing from the soldier he takes responsibility or regrets his actions.”

Herzog, who issued the statement on the eve of Yom Kippur, the Jewish Day of Atonement, said the “circumstances, the length of time passed, and the sorrow Azaria expressed justify enabling him to be allowed to begin a new chapter in his life.”

Azaria was sentenced to 18 months in prison for killing Abdel Fattah al-Sharif , who was one of two men accused of stabbing another Israeli soldier in Hebron. Azaria faced up to 20 years in prison after he was convicted; critics said the shorter sentence amounted to a slap on the wrist. He ultimately served only nine months before he was released.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) did not issue a statement after the pardon. But in a July letter in response to the pardon request, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir said “the request should not be granted.”

In direct contradiction to Herzog, Zamir’s office stated that Azaria had never expressed sorrow or remorse about the killing. Zamir opposed the pardon because Azaria had not taken responsibility for his actions, and there were no “specific personal circumstances of significant weight” that warranted a pardon.

Defense Minister Israel Katz celebrated the pardon, calling it a “humane and appropriate decision.” He said in a statement the “time has come to allow (Azaria) to put the past behind him, rebuild his life and his future.”

尽管军方总参谋长反对，以色列总统伊萨克·赫尔佐格还是赦免了一名士兵，该士兵于 2016 年在被占领的约旦河西岸枪杀了一名失去行动能力的巴勒斯坦袭击者。

赫尔佐格周六宣布这一决定时表示，此举将允许事发时正在服兵役的埃洛尔·阿扎里亚“继续他的生活”。该决定还将消除阿扎里亚的犯罪记录。

该案件分裂了以色列社会，因为它有可能使军队政治化——甚至导致了当时的国防部长摩西·亚阿隆辞职——包括总理本雅明·内塔尼亚胡在内的许多右翼人士呼吁赦免阿扎里亚。

但以色列军方当时明确表示，他们认为这起枪击事件“严重违反了以色列国防军的价值观、行为准则和军事行动标准”。事件视频显示，当时担任战斗医护兵的阿扎里亚接近一名涉嫌持刀袭击的巴勒斯坦男子，随后向倒在街头受伤的男子头部开枪。

在X网站上发表的一份声明中，亚阿隆猛烈抨击了赦免决定。“这名士兵声称他开枪射杀恐怖分子并非因为感到生命受到威胁，而是‘因为他罪有应得’，”亚阿隆说道。他直接对赫尔佐格说：“你决定抹去他的犯罪记录，却没有听取这名士兵是否承担责任或后悔自己的行为。”

赫尔佐格在犹太赎罪日（Yom Kippur）前夕发表声明称，“鉴于当时的形势、时间的长短以及阿扎里亚所表达的悲伤，我们有理由允许他开始人生的新篇章。”

阿扎里亚因杀害阿卜杜勒·法塔赫·沙里夫而被判处18个月监禁。沙里夫是两名被控在希伯伦刺伤另一名以色列士兵的男子之一。阿扎里亚被定罪后面临最高20年的监禁；批评人士称，较短的刑期简直是轻判。他最终只服刑了9个月就被释放了。

以色列国防军（IDF）在赦免后没有发表声明。但在7月份回复赦免请求的一封信中，以色列国防军总参谋长埃亚尔·扎米尔中将表示“不应批准该请求”。

与赫尔佐格的说法截然相反，扎米尔的办公室声明，阿扎里亚从未对杀戮行为表达过悲伤或悔恨。扎米尔反对赦免阿扎里亚，因为阿扎里亚没有承担责任，而且也没有任何“足以构成赦免理由的特殊个人情况”。

以色列国防部长卡茨对赦免表示欢迎，称其为“人道且恰当的决定”。他在一份声明中表示，“现在是时候让（阿扎里亚）放下过去，重建生活和未来了。”