Killing of Abdel Fattah al-Sharif

This page is subject to the extended confirmed restriction related to the Arab-Israeli conflict.On March 24, 2016, Elor Azaria, an Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) soldier, fatally shot Abdel Fattah al-Sharif, a Palestinian, in the head as the latter lay wounded on the ground in the Tel Rumeida neighborhood of Hebron.

[3] The family of al-Sharif, which had demanded Azaria receive a life-sentence,[4] pointed out the Israeli military gives harsher sentences to Palestinian children convicted of throwing stones.

[16] On 31 March, military judge Lieutenant Colonel Ronen Shor ordered the shooter released from jail to open arrest at his base, the headquarters of the Kfir Brigade.

[28][29] IDF's lead investigator testified in court on 1 June that an ambulance driver, Ofer Ohana, who took many videos of the incident, had moved a knife thought to have been used in the earlier stabbing closer to al-Sharif and tampered with evidence to make it look like Azaria had killed him in self-defence.

[clarification needed][43] On 26 July, the final day of the cross-examination, Azaria denied that his motive for shooting al-Sharif was revenge and claimed that Shapira was lying.

[45] On 23 August, senior IDF Reserves officers Uzi Dayan, Shmuel Zakai and Dan Bitton, who were set to testify on Azaria's behalf, submitted their declarations to the court, which were subsequently leaked to the public.

Dan Bitton criticized officers at the scene of the incident and argued that a "wrong verdict" will lead to a situation in which no soldier will be able to shoot to save lives.

[50] On 30 August, Asher Horowitz, a member of Hebron's emergency response team, testified, claiming that it was feared that al-Sharif was booby-trapped because he was wearing a jacket on a hot day.

[51] On 31 August, defense attorneys produced a report by retired pathologist Yehuda Hiss which stated that al-Sharif had died before Azaria shot him in the head and that the movements of his hand shown in footage could have been spasms.

[55] On 5 September, a lieutenant in the Kfir Brigade who was not at the scene said that he found Azaria's belief that al-Sharif was wearing a suicide vest was plausible and that he therefore was justified in killing him.

However, during the cross-examination, the prosecution proved that he had only heard Azaria's story after he had already gotten advice from his defense lawyer, with the lieutenant also admitting he had never encountered an explosive vest during his military career.

One of Azaria's former non-commissioned officer junior commanders also testified on his behalf, stating that he was a good soldier, never lost control of his emotions and never made any comments disparaging Palestinians.

He also criticized the top three commanders who testified against Azaria as treating him too harshly for making a mistake in what he described as a "chaotic terror scene" where people felt their lives were in danger.

He also stated that there had been a change in MDA's regulations to allow a Palestinian attacker's body to be removed under IDF's order before the bomb squad arrives.

[59][60] Ex-deputy IDF chief Uzi Dayan testified on Azaria's behalf on 19 September, stating that terrorists should be killed even if they don't pose a danger.

Eli Bin, the head of MDA, also testified on the same day that, according to instructions at the time of the incident, an attacker shouldn't be approached if there is a concern about explosives.

Upon being questioned by the prosecution, he stated that Azaria's lawyer, Eyal Beserglick, had sought his help to "destroy the brigade commander" and he had repeatedly rejected his requests.

When questioned about Beserglick's message to have him court ordered as well his replies to cause a commotion and not to speak anything if he was forced to be there, he claimed that he did all he could not to come, as he was against the attempt to turn him into a "state liar".

They also questioned her objectivity and her expertise, alleging that the IDF prosecution had pushed her in the direction they wanted her to go and doubting that she was an expert in the specific area of the testimony.

[76] Channel 2 claimed that IDF had held a meeting with the shooter's father on the previous day, asking him to drop the appeal and fire their attorneys, which would be taken into consideration for a pardon.

[79] His father also appealed for lenient sentencing, asking the court to consider Azaria's service and character as well as the physical and psychological health problems being faced by the family since the trial began.

[93] Azaria appealed to IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eizenkot for leniency on 3 August while standing by his claim that he believed al-Sharif had an explosive device.

[97] Eisenkot stated that while he did not approve of his actions, he nonetheless reduced the sentence out of considerations for compassion, mercy and Azaria's combat service, and that a message had been sent to all soldiers to not to act like him.

The controversy turned into a bitter political debate, splitting Israel's right-wing government and inspiring demonstrations in Ramle and Beit Shemesh in support Azaria, whose identity had yet to be made public.

[16][106] On 31 March 2016, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas commented on the killing in an interview with Ilana Dayan sent on Israeli TV: "This is inhumane, to shoot a living man.

[112] On 25 July, Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman said the government must not express a stance on the shooting until the end of the trial and also criticized the earlier reaction of his predecessor Ya'alon.

[119] On 1 January 2017, Azaria's defense team wrote a letter to Lieberman in which it asked for a state investigation into the trial, claiming that due process had been compromised.

[130] General Eyal Zamir, head of Southern Command, stated on 10 January at the Haifa Leadership Conference that Azaria committed a criminal offense, but it was a threshold.

[131] Defense Minister Lieberman later called on people to calm down regarding the verdict while telling them to remember that Azaria is an excellent soldier and that al-Sharif was a terrorist who came to murder Jews.

[135] The Arab League also criticized the length of the sentence, alleging it showed "racism",[136] while Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights called it "excessively lenient" and "unacceptable".