Key facts
- The Biden administration barred former Israeli soldier Elor Azaria and his immediate family from entering the US.
- The US cited Azaria's role in an extrajudicial killing in the West Bank in 2016 as a gross violation of human rights.
- Azaria was convicted of manslaughter for killing a wounded Palestinian attacker in 2016.
- He served nine months of a 14-month sentence and was released in 2018.
- Israeli President Isaac Herzog recently granted a request to clear Azaria's criminal record.
- The Israeli army had opposed clearing Azaria's record, noting his lack of remorse.
The Biden administration has barred former Israeli soldier Elor Azaria and his immediate family from entering the United States, citing his role in what it described as a gross violation of human rights, specifically an extrajudicial killing in the West Bank in 2016. The decision comes after Israeli President Isaac Herzog pardoned Azaria, clearing his criminal record for the 2016 killing of 21-year-old Abdel Fattah al-Sharif.
Azaria was convicted of manslaughter for shooting al-Sharif in the head after the Palestinian man had been wounded by Israeli soldiers. He was sentenced to 14 months in military prison, serving nine months before his release in May 2018. The Israeli army's chief, Eyal Zamir, had opposed clearing Azaria's record, citing a lack of public remorse.
Herzog stated that Azaria had borne the consequences of his actions for many years and expressed remorse for the consequences, justifying the pardon as a way to allow him to "turn a new page." The president acted in the spirit of Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, and cited a belief in "repair, reconciliation, and the ability to move forward."
Defense Minister Israel Katz, who filed the pardon request, welcomed the decision as "correct, humane, and fitting." However, former Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon condemned the pardon as "a disgrace," accusing Herzog of aligning with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu against former military chief Gadi Eisenkot. National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir expressed his delight with the decision.