BICOM

The prosecution and defence have presented their final arguments in the high-profile military trial of a soldier accused of unlawfully killing a wounded Palestinian attacker in the West Bank city of Hebron in March.

Sgt. Elor Azaria is facing manslaughter charges after he shot dead a seriously wounded Palestinian terrorist, Abed al Fatah al-Sharif, who had stabbed two Israeli soldiers before being shot and incapacitated.

At the Jaffa Military Court yesterday, prosecutor Nadav Weisman said that he “found no legal precedent that justified shooting someone in the head without any warning”. Weisman said that in the video footage, Azaria “isn’t seen warning his friends or anyone else about a bomb that he suspected that the assailant was carrying. It doesn’t make any sense and it contradicts his claim”.

Weisman added: “A defendant who keeps changing his version, even in front of the court, is someone who realises there’s a problem with his initial version.”

Defence lawyer, Eyal Beserglick told the court: “Azaria’s testimony was consistent and the things he remembered during the trial were due to his mental state.”

Azaria’s second defence lawyer Ilan Katz said: “The prosecutor is essentially saying, ‘watch the video and hang Azaria in the city square’.”

In a written summation, the defence highlighted the chaos at the scene during the incident and explained Azaria’s actions, saying “there was no choice but to shoot one bullet in order to ensure that he was neutralized, and not in the body since that could have resulted in an explosive belt detonating”.

The incident sparked intense public debate. Azaria has been condemned for unnecessarily killing the Palestinian man but some have defended his actions, saying that the attacker could have remained a threat. Following the incident, the IDF reissued its rules of engagement and code of conduct to serving soldiers.

A verdict in Azaria’s case is expected to be reached next month. If found guilty, a sentencing hearing would likely follow several weeks later.