Israel soldier who killed wounded Palestinian could soon be out on parole

Elor Azaria, the Israeli soldier who killed a wounded Palestinian in Hebron, may be released on parole as early as 14 March, Israeli media reported.

According to a report broadcast yesterday by Israel’s Channel 20, prison officials have recommended that the convicted soldier be paroled, citing his good behaviour over the past seven months.

Azaria was convicted by an Israeli military court of manslaughter, after he was captured on video shooting Hebron resident Abdel Fattah Al-Sharif in the head in March 2016.

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In a sentence condemned for its leniency, Azaria was sentenced to 18 months in prison, and this was subsequently reduced to just 14 months. At the time, it was reported that Azaria could ultimately get a third of his sentence off for good behaviour, and thus be released on 30 March 2018.

Now, according to Channel 20, prison officials are claiming that Azaria is eligible for parole even earlier, also revealing that he was “permitted to take vacation leaves [from prison] every 28 days” from his “very first month” in jail.

The army parole board will meet on 14 March, and could decide to immediately release the soldier.