Israeli President Isaac Herzog has pardoned former Israeli soldier Elor Azaria, who was convicted of manslaughter for killing a wounded Palestinian in Hebron in 2016.
Azaria, who was serving as an army medic at the time, was filmed shooting Abdel Fattah al-Sharif in the head after the Palestinian had already been shot and wounded by Israeli troops. Al-Sharif had been lying on the ground for about 11 minutes before Azaria fired the fatal shot.
An Israeli military court convicted Azaria in 2017 and sentenced him to 18 months in prison. The sentence was later reduced to 14 months, and he was released in May 2018 after serving nine months.
Herzog announced on September 19, 2026, that he had shortened the remaining period for the removal of Azaria’s criminal record, effectively clearing the conviction from his record.
The Israeli military had opposed the pardon. Chief of Staff Lieutenant-General Eyal Zamir and other senior officers said Azaria had failed to show sufficient remorse or take responsibility for his actions.
However, Herzog’s office said the decision took into account the military’s position and was based on the passage of time, completion of Azaria’s sentence and remorse he had expressed. The president’s office said the pardon was issued in the spirit of Yom Kippur, the Jewish Day of Atonement.
Defence Minister Israel Katz welcomed the decision, saying it sent a message that Israel does not abandon its soldiers and their families.
The 2016 killing sparked intense debate in Israel and international condemnation. Palestinian officials described the shooting as an “extrajudicial execution” and a war crime, while the United Nations human rights office previously described Azaria’s sentence as excessively lenient.
In 2024, the administration of former US President Joe Biden barred Azaria and his immediate family from entering the United States, citing what it described as an extrajudicial killing.
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