Btselem, Breaking The Silence Puzzled By Need For Trial Of Accused Soldiers

“We could have told you the moment the story happened that the guy is guilty – he’s an Israeli soldier.”

Tel Aviv, January 4 – The manslaughter conviction today of an IDF sergeant in the unlawful shooting death of a wounded attacker has human rights activists scratching their heads at the lengthy due process that preceded the judges’ ruling, instead of the automatic assumption that an Israeli solider is a criminal.

Representatives of Btselem, Breaking the Silence, Machsom Watch, Gisha, and several other European-Union-funded human rights groups voiced their shared bewilderment this afternoon that anyone thought a trial was necessary, given that the accused is an Israeli soldier, and therefore by definition a murderous criminal. The organizations were joined in their expressions of confusion by politicians from the Arab Joint List.

Sgt. Elor Azaria was convicted this morning on charges that he violated orders and rules of engagement by shooting an assailant who had already been neutralized. In March of last year, the infantryman shot a Palestinian who minutes earlier had attempted to stab a soldier and was already lying on the ground neutralized. Contradictory testimonies and a weak defense strategy ultimately resulted in a military tribunal finding him guilty, since, in the judges’ assessment, the seriously-injured would-be stabber could no longer be considered an imminent threat, and standing orders prohibited Azaria from opening fire under the circumstances. A representative of Btselem lamented the waste of time that the eight-month investigation and legal process became.

“We could have told you the moment the story happened that the guy is guilty – he’s an Israeli soldier. It’s ontological,” declared Field Coordinator Birke Naukapo. “Only Palestinians or Palestinian-supporting Israelis are entitled to a trial because those are the only people who can conceivably be not guilty. Such an unfortunate waste of time, energy, and resources.”

The Joint List released a statement noting that all IDF soldiers are like Azaria, but that only Azaria got caught. “What do we need this show of a legal procedure for?” wondered MK Dr. Ahmad Tibi. “Just execute the suspect as he did that poor, defenseless stabber, and while you’re at it, execute the rest of the Israeli military.” He denied that he was engaging in any form of incitement to violence, since by definition, incitement only occurs when it is done by an Israeli Jew.

A spokesman for the Zionist Union stated that the faction remained divided over whether to support the military justice system and the rule of law or to attack it for its verdict granting legitimacy to a Likud-led government and defense policy.

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