Earlier this week, prominent national-religious rabbi and chairman of the Tzohar rabbinical association, Rabbi David Stav, said that the nation was facing trying and difficult times but insisted that a terrorist who has committed an attack but has been wounded and therefore no longer represents a threat should not be further harmed.

“In these days in which the blood is boiling… it is important to preserve our moral superiority: [We must] not harm those who are not involved in murderous acts and we must not harm those who have already been neutralized and do not represent a threat,” the rabbi ruled.

Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu, municipal chief rabbi of Safed, reacted to Rav Stav’s comments, and said a terrorist who had committed murder should himself be killed.

“It is forbidden to leave a murderer alive,” Rav Eliyahu told the Galei Yisrael radio station on Wednesday. He accused Tzohar rabbis of “forgetting Jewish law” and said “they are only interested in looking good to non-Jews.”

“Jewish law is clear… there are courts which can avenge blood and there are individuals who can avenge blood. This is the Jewish law, if the court does not avenge the blood then an individual can avenge the blood,” he added.

To “avenge blood” is a concept in Jewish law relating to the punishment for murder and manslaughter.

“We can’t think all day about what others are thinking about us,” the rabbi concluded. 

Another senior rabbinical figure, prominent ultra-Orthodox arbiter of Jewish law Rabbi Ben-Tzion Mutzafi, was also fiercely critical of Rav Stav’s approach.

According to the Srugim news website, Mutzafi was asked by his students whether, if a terrorist has been wounded and incapacitated, it is permitted according to Jewish law to kill him or not.

“It is commanded to take hold of his head and hit it against the ground until there is no longer any life in it,” Mutzafi responded.

“Do not listen to Rav Stav, for the one who is merciful to the cruel will end up being cruel to the merciful,” he added.

Rabbi Yaakov Ariel, municipal chief rabbi of Ramat Gan and one of the most senior national-religious leaders, has also waded into the debate.

He was asked in a question on the yeshiva.org website about the differing opinions voiced by the rabbis on the issue.

Ariel backed Rav Stav’s initial comments, replying that when the terrorist still presents a danger it is permitted to kill him.

“If the danger has passed and the terrorist is restrained or injured, [people] must act wisely, judiciously and not through spontaneous emotion,” ruled Rav Ariel.

“In Islam, the commandment to avenge blood is a big commandment, and there is no need to add fuel to the fire. Death does not necessarily deter since the one killed becomes a ‘shahid’ [martyr]. It needs to be evaluated with security experts.”

Content is provided courtesy of the Jerusalem Post