The manslaughter trial of IDF Sgt. Elor Azaria, accused of killing a subdued terrorist following an attempted attack in Hebron in March, continued Monday at the military court in Jaffa, with the testimonies of former IDF deputy chief Maj. Gen. (ret.) Uzi Dayan and IDF Technological and Logistics Directorate chief Gen. Dan Biton. Both high-ranking officers asserted that a soldier in the field must determine the danger of a specific situation, as Azaria claims to have done prior to opening fire. Azaria has testified that he feared the neutralized terrorist was hiding an explosive device on his body. Dayan questioned the quality of the military investigation in the case, stressing that a criminal investigation should not have been rushed in this case and that Azaria's right to assert his innocence "has been trampled." Dayan further explained that he decided to testify "out of concern about what may come for soldiers and fighters in the field, and about the impact of this incident in general. ... I believe each day [of the trial] causes the IDF more damage." He went on to express concern that soldiers would become wary of taking action due to the potential legal consequences. Asked by the prosecutor about the procedure for opening fire, Dayan stated that depending on one's mission or the situation at hand, a soldier may have to make additional considerations. "Do you need to kill terrorists in every condition and situation? No. But the answer to the question of whether a terrorist's fate is to die is 'yes.'" Biton then took the stand, stressing that Azaria had the right to open fire if he sensed danger, and that without having been at the scene, it is difficult to assess the threat posed by the neutralized terrorist. Speaking about threat assessment, he said, "In the operational arena, this is called intent and capability. It is enough that he [Azaria] alone identifies it in order to fire. There is no black and white in the field." Addressing the prosecution, Biton added that "the military cannot have a lawyer accompany each soldier on the battlefield. You are castrating the military." Azaria's father, Charlie, who recently suffered a stroke, came to the courthouse to support his son on Sunday. He thanked the officers for testifying in Azaria's defense and saluted Biton.
