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Israeli leaders rally around commander in Azaria trial
Israeli political and defence leaders have thrown their support behind a company commander who faced abuse after giving evidence against a soldier accused of unlawfully killing a wounded terrorist.
Company Commander Maj. Tom Naaman faced a barrage of social media abuse after giving evidence against Elor Azaria, who is accused of unlawfully killing a wounded Palestinian terrorist in the West Bank city of Hebron in March.
IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eizenkot has met with Naaman to offer his support, and said: “Any attempt to apply pressure on those involved in the trial is reprehensible.”
Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman has responded to the trial by saying, “I oppose any attacks or insults against IDF officers”, while Education Minister Naftali Bennett called “to immediately stop the attacks against” Naaman.
During testimony last week, Azaria’s commander Tom Naaman told the court that he had instructed Azaria, a combat medic, to tend to a wounded soldier. He said: “I was angry that the shooting happened without my approval. In the initial questioning Azaria did not mention fear of a knife or an explosive device to me.”
When asked why he had shot the terrorist, Azaria told Naaman “the terrorist was alive, he deserved to die.” In a rebuttal to the argument of the defence, Naaman added: “I saw no signs of any explosive on the body… Nobody on the scene expressed a suspicion of an explosive to me.”
Naaman was branded a “traitor” by some on social media in response to his evidence. Police have subsequently arrested a West Bank resident on suspicion of inciting violence against Naaman.
During the incident in March, the attacker stabbed two Israeli soldiers before being shot and incapacitated. Video footage from the Israeli human rights group B’tselem showed Azaria several minutes later opening fire and killing the wounded Palestinian. The incident has sparked intense public debate. Azaria has been condemned by many for unnecessarily killing the terrorist. However, others have defended his actions, saying that the attacker could have been armed with explosives. Meanwhile, the IDF reiterated its rules of engagement and code of conduct in the wake of the incident.