Elor Azaria released from IDF, put on house arrest

The soldier, convicted of manslaughter after shooting dead a neutralized Palestinian terrorist, will only be allowed out of his parents' home in Ramla to attend prayers at the synagogue; house arrest to last until decision on appeals in the case on July 30.

Yoav Zitun, Shahar Hay, Itay Blumenthal|Published: 07.20.17 , 09:41

Sgt. Elor Azaria, who was convicted of manslaughter after shooting dead a neutralized Palestinian terrorist in Hebron, was released from the IDF on Thursday morning and put on house arrest.

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Azaria, who was sentenced to 18 months, is in the process of appealing his conviction. The prosecution, meanwhile, is appealing the sentence, arguing it is too lenient.

Since his IDF service has ended and he can no longer be detained at an army base, the court decided to put him on house arrest at his parents' home in Ramla until a ruling is made on both of the appeals on July 30.

Sign greeting Azaria home saying 'Elor Azaria was born to freedom'

Brig. Gen. Orly Markman, the head of the military court, determined Azaria will be on a full house arrest and be allowed out only to attend prayers at the synagogue with his family.

The IDF allowed Azaria to return his military equipment on Wednesday so he could leave the Nahshonim Base, where he has been held in open detention since the shooting in March 2016, as early as possible. This was likely done to avoid media coverage of his release, and indeed he left the base at 6am.