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Ya’alon says soldier in Hebron killing not a hero
Israel’s Defence Minister Moshe Ya’alon yesterday told the Knesset that a soldier who opened fire and killed a wounded Palestinian attacker in Hebron is “not a hero,” in an incident which has sparked fierce public debate.
The incident took place several days ago in the West Bank city of Hebron, a focal point during the current wave of attacks by Palestinians, which have left at least 31 Israelis dead since October. The assailant stabbed two Israeli soldiers before being shot and incapacitated. Video footage from the Israeli human rights group B’tselem shows a soldier several minutes later opening fire and killing the wounded Palestinian. The unnamed soldier has been arrested and is soon expected to appear in a military court with an investigation underway.
The incident has seen the soldier condemned by many for unnecessarily killing the terrorist. However, others have defended his actions, saying that the attacker was still moving and could have been armed with explosives. The debate has played out in the political arena, where Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Moshe Ya’alon have defended the military’s decision to take legal and disciplinary proceedings. Jewish Home leader Naftali Bennett accused them of having already tried and condemned the soldier. Meanwhile, Yisrael Beitenu leader Avigdor Lieberman pledged to attend the military hearing, to show solidarity with the soldier.
Yesterday, Ya’alon told the Knesset that an initial military inquiry showed that “this is a case of a soldier who has transgressed, and not a hero.” He asked pointedly, “What do you want? A brutal army that has lost its moral backbone?” Meanwhile, Netanyahu told his cabinet “IDF troops, our children, adhere to high moral standards as they bravely fight blood-thirsty murderers in tough operational circumstances,” and expressed certainty that “the inquiry takes all of the conditions into account.” Bennett’s office said that he defends the right of the soldier and his family to be heard and that he “views all soldiers as his children.”