US sanctions ex-Israeli soldier convicted in 2016 killing of disarmed Palestinian assailant

The Biden administration on Wednesday sanctioned a former Israeli soldier who was convicted in 2016 and served jail time for the extrajudicial killing of a wounded and disarmed Palestinian.

The sanctions target Elor Azaria, a former sergeant in the Israel Defense Forces, who an Israeli military court convicted of manslaughter in 2016. He served nine months of an 18-month sentence, in a high-profile episode that exposed deep divisions in Israeli society. 

The decision to sanction Azaria is part of the administration’s broad look at violence carried out by extremist Israeli settlers targeting Palestinians in the West Bank and also addressing “gross violations of human rights by a government official,” State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said Wednesday.

The Israeli Embassy in the U.S. said that Azaria is not a government official. 

The sanctions bar Azaria and his immediate family members from entering the U.S. The Times of Israel reported that Azaria has protested in support of Israeli soldiers accused of beating Palestinian suspects and appeared in a primary campaign ad for a Likud lawmaker. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is part of the Likud political party.

The State Department also said it was imposing visa restrictions on a dozen additional individuals “for having been involved in or meaningfully contributed to undermining the peace, security, or stability in the West Bank.”

“These visa restrictions are being pursued against those who have used violence against persons or property, or unduly restricted civilians’ access to essential services and basic necessities to include access to food, water, electricity, or medical supplies. The immediate family members of these individuals may also be subject to these restrictions,” Miller said.

The State Department said it was mandated to keep those names confidential because the visa restrictions are being imposed under the Immigration and Nationality Act.

The visa restriction on Azaria is being imposed under an authority of the State Department Appropriations Act, which permits making the identity of sanctioned individuals public, according to Miller.

The State Department generally has a policy of not publicizing the names of individuals it imposes visa restrictions on but does do so in selective cases. 

The move drew pushback from Israeli government officials. 

Benny Gantz, a member of the political opposition in Israel, slammed the U.S. action, saying there is no reason the U.S. “should impose sanctions against Israeli civilians.” 

“The State of Israel has an independent, robust judicial system that is both capable and willing to punish under Israeli law,” Gantz said in a statement. 

“I want to convey to our American friends — there is no justification to interfere in Israel’s internal legal processes.”

The Biden administration has imposed numerous rounds of sanctions against Israeli individuals and groups it determines are contributing to instability and violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.