Elor Azaria



Elor Azaria is a soldier in Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) who, in March 2016, shot dead 21-year-old Palestinian Abed al-Fattah Yusri al-Sharif in the Israeli-occupied West Bank city of Hebron.

Sharif and another Palestinian man, 21-year-old Ramzi Aziz al-Tamimi al-Qasrawi, had both been shot after an attempted stabbing attack on Israeli soldiers.

Eleven minutes after the initial shootings, Azaria was filmed walking onto the scene and shooting Sharif, who lay motionless on the ground.

He then shook hands with Baruch Marzel, a notorious ultra-nationalist who lives in an illegal settlement in Hebron and is known for his violence towards Palestinians and leftist Israelis.

While military judges and media pundits deliberated over his fate during his trial, Israeli ministers openly expressed solidarity with Azaria and advocated a blanket amnesty for his actions.

After being sentenced to 18 months in jail and serving just half of it, however, Azaria has become a cause celebre, receiving a hero's welcome from the Israeli public, as Mako reports.

A Tel Aviv-area club owner told the magazine how he heaps adoration on Azaria whenever he makes an appearance.