The Israeli soldier who was convicted of manslaughter and jailed for killing an immobilized Palestinian terrorist in Hebron in 2016 has appealed to a military parole board for early release so as to be able to go home for Passover.
Elor Azaria was originally sentenced to 18 months in prison, reduced by IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eizenkot to 14 months in response to a plea from Azaria. He began serving his sentence last August and is now halfway through it.
"I'm asking you, send me home for the holiday of freedom [Passover, at the end of March] and let me get my life back. Let me go today," Azaria told the panel on Wednesday.
"I shot the terrorist murderer because in the field, in real time, I thought he had a bomb. If I had known at the time what I know now I would have acted differently," he said.
"I've contributed a lot to the security of the country, in a lot of arrests and operations.
"During my service, I was injured when a terrorist threw a [cement] block at me, but I kept my morale up and kept serving. While I was in open detention at Nahshonim [facility], I passed out from stress and was in the hospital for three days."
Azaria's attorney, Yoram Sheftel, told the parole board that releasing Azaria early offers "an opportunity to put an end to the affair that drove a wedge between the IDF and the public, tearing a rift unlike anything else since the founding of the state. The quicker it comes to an end, the better it will be for everyone. The past two years have been a nightmare for Elor."
Sheftel said his client's behavior in prison had been "exemplary, despite how bad he felt."
"The prison authorities have done everything in their power to make things easier for him," Sheftel added. "They also think it's a shame he's there, and their feelings reflect the wishes of the vast majority of the people of Zion."
Chief IDF Prosecutor Col. Sharon Zagagi-Pinhas told the parole board that only in extraordinary circumstances is it accepted practice for a military parole board to cut a prison sentence in half.
"There are only a few instances of that happening. In the past, parole after half a sentence had been served occurred only in the event of a medical indication. This case does not meet the standard requirements for commuting half a sentence," Zagagi-Pinhas said.
The parole board is expected to make its decision in the next few days.
