An Israeli soldier who shot dead a wounded Palestinian as he lay on the ground posing no apparent threat was convicted of manslaughter Wednesday after a trial that deeply divided the country.
The soldier, Elor Azaria, had been on trial in a military court since May, with right-wing politicians defending him despite top army brass harshly condemning his actions. Sentencing is expected at a later date. He faces up to 20 years in prison.
Judge Colonel Maya Heller spent more than two and a half hours reading out the decision, sharply criticising the arguments of Azaria's lawyers. On behalf of the three-judge panel, Heller said there was no reason for Azaria to open fire since the Palestinian was posing no threat.
She called Azaria's testimony "evolving and evasive." Azaria's demeanour drastically changed as the judge read the verdict.
Dressed in a green army uniform, he had entered the courtroom smiling, with family members and supporters applauding him. But he and his family later looked shaken as the judge spoke, with his mother and father huddling together.
Azaria was 19 at the time of the killing in March 2016 in the city of Hebron in the occupied West Bank.
Israeli soldier convicted over death of wounded Palestinian attacker https://t.co/XlCUXzVCHh pic.twitter.com/8YhIHpn7zH
— BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) January 4, 2017
Protests outside
In a sign of the tensions surrounding the case, dozens of protesters scuffled with police Wednesday as they gathered outside Israel's military headquarters in Tel Aviv, where the verdict was announced. The shooting set off intense political debate, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu having earlier called Azaria's father to express his sympathy. Others on the right have called for him to be pardoned in an extraordinary public rift between politicians and the country's military. The case burst into public view when a video of the March 24 shooting emerged and spread widely online. The video showed Abdul Fatah al-Sharif, 21, lying on the ground, shot along with another man after stabbing and moderately wounding a soldier minutes earlier, according to the army. Azaria then shoots him again in the head without any apparent provocation. His lawyers argued the soldier may have thought the Palestinian was wearing explosives, but others said he had already been checked for a suicide belt and no one in the video appears to be acting with caution toward him.Watch the reality of #Israeli settlers from an Israeli female soldier. They're unbelievable! pic.twitter.com/NQAc8L8Jpn— Muhammad Smiry- Gaza (@MuhammadSmiry) December 29, 2016
Polarised public
Military chief of staff Gadi Eisenkot has spoken out against the politicisation of the case, warning it could badly harm the army. He said rules on when to open fire must be followed.
The case galvanised the Israeli public, and television and radio stations interrupted their broadcasts to carry live coverage of the verdict.
It had been portrayed by some as a test of whether Israel's military could prosecute one of its own, though many Palestinians dismissed it, arguing Azaria was only taken to trial because of the video.
