Defense Minister Israel Katz formally requested a presidential pardon for Elor Azaria on Tuesday, a decade after the Hebron shooting that ignited intense debate over the IDF’s ethical standards and exposed deep societal rifts.
Azaria was convicted of manslaughter in January 2017 for shooting Abdel Fattah al-Sharif, an incapacitated Palestinian assailant, on March 24, 2016. Al-Sharif and an accomplice had stabbed an IDF soldier before being shot by troops; al-Sharif was lying wounded on the ground when Azaria fired the fatal shot to his head.
Katz’s letter to President Isaac Herzog serves as a formal recommendation supporting Azaria’s own application, which specifically seeks to erase his criminal record. Azaria has been out of prison since 2018.
In 2017, Azaria was sentenced to 18 months for manslaughter and conduct unbecoming. Then-IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot, now a leading opposition figure, commuted the sentence to 14 months that September.
Then-Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman subsequently recommended a pardon, but then-President Reuven Rivlin rejected it in November 2017. Rivlin argued that further leniency would undermine the resilience of the IDF and the state, emphasizing that the military’s values form the bedrock of its strength and Israel’s security.
Katz contended Tuesday that Rivlin’s resilience argument “ceased to be relevant with the passage of time,” particularly since Azaria has already served his sentence and now seeks only to accelerate the standard expungement of his record.
A military parole board later reduced the sentence by one-third, leading to Azaria’s release on May 10, 2018, after serving nine months. A subsequent pardon request in 2022 stalled; this marks the third formal attempt.
Katz noted that Azaria’s application highlights the elapsed time and the difficulty his criminal record poses for social reintegration and employment.
The IDF maintains its opposition to the request, a stance Katz acknowledged in his letter.
The Defense Minister outlined several arguments for clemency. He stressed that the incident occurred over ten years ago, that Azaria has completed his punishment, and that the current petition merely asks to shorten the waiting period for a clean record.
Katz also cited Azaria’s prior record as an outstanding soldier with no previous offenses. He underscored the complex circumstances of the incident, noting that the assailant had stabbed and wounded two of Azaria’s comrades.
“The incident took place when Azaria was a young soldier in highly intense and stressful conditions, in a complex security situation,” Katz wrote.
The original 2017 military court verdict similarly acknowledged that Azaria’s clean history and the operational stress warranted a lighter sentence.
Katz further argued that the intense public scrutiny surrounding the case exacted a severe psychological and emotional toll on Azaria and his family.
“His face and the minute details of the incident have become widely known,” Katz wrote, contrasting Azaria’s situation with typical cases where individuals serve their time and return to anonymity to rebuild their lives.
“It is unreasonable that, a decade later, [Azaria] continues to pay too heavy a price… one that is preventing him from working and earning a living in a respectable way,” Katz added.
President Herzog’s office stated that he will await further recommendations before deliberating on the petition.
“After receiving all opinions, the President will weigh the request responsibly and with due seriousness,” the statement read.
