BICOM

Israeli President Reuven Rivlin yesterday rejected a request from Elor Azaria for a Presidential Pardon.

Azaria was convicted of manslaughter in January for shooting and killing an immobile Palestinian assailant who had stabbed an Israeli soldier in the West Bank City of Hebron in March 2016.

The pardon request was the last stage of an extended legal battle. In September, IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisnekot reduced Azaria’s sentence by four months.

The President’s legal adviser released a statement addressed to Azaria that said “an additional lightening of your sentence would harm the resilience to the Israel Defence Forces and the State of Israel. The values of the Israel Defence Forces, and among them the Purity of Arms, are the core foundation of the strength of the Israel Defence Forces, and have always stood strong for us in the just struggle for our right to a safe, national home, and in the building a robust society”.

In response, Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman said that “President Rivlin had the opportunity to put an end to this affair that rocked Israeli society. Apart from the personal price paid by the soldier and his family, I believed and still believe that in this unique case it was also appropriate to consider the public interest, the need to heal the rifts in society, and the impact of the event and the trial on IDF soldiers and the youth who are about to be recruited”.

Azaria’s family said that they were  “very disappointed by the lack of sympathy from the President”.