Oshra Azariya, the mother of former IDF Sgt. Elor Azariya, shouted at the judges of an army appeal court on Sunday, shortly after the court rejected an appeal of the soldier’s January manslaughter conviction for the shooting death of a wounded Arab terrorist in March 2016.
Earlier on Sunday, the IDF appeals court announced that it had upheld both Azariya’s conviction and the 18-month sentence handed down in February.
In addition, the court ruled that the former soldier will begin serving his prison term 10 days from today.
Azariya is currently under house arrest, after his three-year mandatory army service ended earlier this month.
Shortly after the court announced its decision, Azariya’s mother, Oshra, castigated the judges, calling the rejection of her son’s appeal an embarrassment.
“You only sanctify death, that’s such an embarrassment.”
“The terrorists are laughing in our faces; all of these terrorists are laughing at us,” Oshra Azariya continued, adding that the decision would discourage soldiers from eliminating potentially dangerous terrorists in the future.
“There is a disaster coming and it’s not far off!”
Oshra Azariya was treated in the courtroom by a paramedic after she felt ill during the reading of the court’s decision.
Elor Azariya’s father, Charlie Azariya, also responded angrily to the court’s decision, shouting at the prosecution: “You’re castrating the army!”
The court ruled that Elor Azariya will begin serving his 18-month jail sentence on August 9th, though his entry into prison may be delayed if he appeals to the Supreme Court. Following the decision Sunday, Azariya’s defense team indicated they would indeed appeal the ruling to the Supreme Court.