The first weeks of the trial of IDF Sgt. Elor Azariya left many with the feeling that someone high up in the IDF and/or Defense Ministry wants to see a manslaughter conviction against the soldier who shot a wounded terrorist dead in Hebron minutes after the terrorist stabbed an IDF soldier. There was an air of overzealousness surrounding the military prosecution’s commitment to the case, enlisting reserve duty attorneys from a prominent law firm to prosecute the case. Former Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon was also quick to condemn the soldier’s actions long before he was charged, signaling he was determined to set an example.

On Monday 25 Menachem Av Elor’s platoon commander testified as a defense witness, and some feel this may have been a turning point in the case, which has been somewhat stacked against Azariya.

The case continued on Monday in the Jaffa Military Court and the platoon commander, Lt. ‘M’ gave his testimony, unequivocally backing the version of the events presented to investigators by Elor.

Arriving in uniform, the young lieutenant explained he instructed a soldier to guard the wounded terrorist with instructions he can fire at the terrorist if he made any sudden moves or placed a hand in a pocket. This undermined statements by the company commander and battalion commander, both indicating Azariya acted inappropriately.

The young office explained his unit operates professionally and this was the case here too, giving total backing to the actions of Sgt. Azariya. He spoke of the wounded terrorist and how he saw a knife in his hand, distancing everyone from the area. He added both terrorists were thin but yet one appeared to have bulk, which he feared may have been a bomb, once again backing Azariya’s fears. [The second terrorist was shot dead earlier].

He added that training drills in the weeks prior to the event did not include a scenario in which a terrorist had a bomb, as he feared was the case here. He added that he was surprised to see the chain of events after the terrorist was shot dead, how suddenly officers were being contacted by their senior as if someone was not pleased with the outcome. He explained the company commander was contacted by the brigade commander, with the latter telling him to explain to his troops the outcome in this case was not acceptable and the events that transpired were very serious. He added military police were involved in a flash and the word was the IDF Chief of Staff wanted findings of a probe by the next morning at 6:00AM, which he felt signaled the decision was already made.

‘M’ did not hide his criticism of the higher command and how events occurred, basically leaving the sergeant out in the cold to defend himself.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)