West Bank · 19 September, 2026 · 2 min read
Isaac Herzog Pardons Elor Azaria After He Killed Wounded Palestinian in Hebron
President Isaac Herzog pardoned Elor Azaria, erasing his criminal record for the 2016 Hebron killing. The move shortens the remaining erasure period, effectively clearing his record despite IDF opposition.
Whether clemency is moral rehabilitation or mainly legal expungement.
7 of 9 outlets skipped it: azaria filed a request in July to shorten erasure time.
Ynetnews was read line by line by the Watchdog: 3.8. See the score →
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Same story, two versions
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Al Jazeera
“decided the circumstances justified allowing Azaria to “open a new chapter in his life”.”Read the original ↗
Al Jazeera stresses remorse and rehabilitation, while The New York Times foregrounds the expunging of a conviction.
Herzog clears Azaria record
Israeli President Isaac Herzog granted a pardon to former soldier Elor Azaria after he executed a wounded Palestinian in Hebron in the occupied West Bank in 2016, expunging the criminal record of a man convicted of manslaughter.
“President Herzog decided that the circumstances, the time served, and the remorse expressed by Azaria justify allowing him to open a new chapter in his life.”
The case centered on Azaria, an army medic at the time, who was filmed shooting Abdel Fattah al-Sharif in the head after al-Sharif had been shot by Israeli troops and lay bleeding on the ground for about 11 minutes.
Herzog’s office said the decision followed “President Herzog decided that the circumstances, the time served, and the remorse expressed by Azaria justify allowing him to open a new chapter in his life.”
The pardon was issued despite opposition from Israeli army Chief of Staff Lieutenant-General Eyal Zamir, who said Azaria “has refrained from expressing remorse and taking responsibility for his actions, even a decade after his conviction”.
Debate, letters, and X posts
In July, Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir addressed a letter to Herzog opposing Azaria’s request to expunge his criminal record, saying the position was based on Azaria’s lack of remorse and responsibility “even a decade after his conviction.”
Defense Minister Israel Katz welcomed the pardon, writing on X that it “sends an important message to [Israeli army] soldiers and their families: We do not abandon our fighters”.
Ultra-right Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir welcomed the pardon on Saturday, writing on X, “For someone like me who demonstrated a decade ago for Ilor Azaria, erasing the criminal record of someone who killed a terrorist affects me and makes me very happy.”
Ben-Gvir also urged Herzog to grant a similar pardon to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is facing corruption charges, linking the decision to broader political debate in Israel.
What the pardon changes
The decision came as the 2016 shooting had already “generated intense debate in Israel and drew international condemnation,” with the Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemning it as an “extrajudicial execution” and a “war crime”.
“excessively lenient”
The United Nations human rights office described the original sentence as “excessively lenient” and said it risked “reinforcing the culture of impunity,” while the family of al-Sharif dismissed the legal proceedings as a “farce” aimed at improving Israel’s international image.
In 2024, the Joe Biden administration barred Azaria and his immediate family from entering the United States, citing an “extrajudicial killing in the West Bank,” and the Times of Israel reported that the pardon “doesn’t lift the sanctions former US president Joe Biden’s administration imposed on Azaria in 2024.”
The Times of Israel also reported that Herzog’s decision removed employment roadblocks by shortening the remaining erasure period, with the president’s office saying the shortening took effect immediately while not undermining the legal proceedings.