Sgt. (res.) Aviad Frija, indicted for killing Yuval Kestelman during a Jerusalem terror attack after allegedly mistaking him for a terrorist, spoke out in a Facebook video as part of a fundraising campaign for his defense.
Kestelman, an attorney from Mevaseret Zion with a background in the security services, was at the scene of a November 2023 terror attack that took place at the entrance to Jerusalem and engaged the terrorists, neutralizing both.
Frija, a reservist on his way back to reserve duty, was also at the scene and shot Kestelman dead after he had killed the two Hamas terrorists.
In the video posted to Facebook on Monday, Frija defended himself, saying that many, including Kestelman’s family, “Only saw a partial picture of what happened.”
“Since the incident, people who don’t know me have told lies about me,” Frija said, adding that people said he did a “verification of killing,” shooting Kestelman again when he was down to ensure he was dead.
הפיגוע בירושלים | תיעוד רגעי הירי הראשונים; שני מחבלים נוטרלו >>> https://t.co/UQv9sy9q04@VeredPelman pic.twitter.com/omB2pYL6qO
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Kestelman, Frija families at odds
Frija also alleged that people have attached political labels to him and treated him like an extremist looking to take the law into his own hands.
“They twisted and distorted things I said; they defamed me everywhere, and I was quiet,” he said.
Frija described the scene of the attack as chaotic, adding, “Everything I did was to save lives and stop the attack – to save the people that were there, to treat the injured. I sought to engage the terrorists like how I was trained in the army.
“Bullets flew around my head. Those were battle conditions where you need to decide how to act in seconds.
Fighting conditions that are not less complicated from battle in Gaza – maybe even more.”
Frija said he would fight to clear his name and thanked those supporting him and his family.
A crowdfunding campaign in his support had raised nearly NIS 400,000 as of Thursday.
Kestelman’s father, Moshe, said the campaign was infuriating, describing it as an attempt to save Frija from the consequences of his actions in an interview Wednesday with Kan Reshet Bet.
“They are going out with a fundraising campaign to rescue him and allow him to get away from a punishment that he deserves 100%.”
“If he had followed the rules of opening fire, Yuval would still be alive,” he added, asking, “Shouldn’t he be judged for that?”
Moshe said the claims made by Frija in the video lack a basis in reality. He stressed that Frija shot Kestelman when his hands were in the air, he had dropped his weapon, and he had removed his jacket, attempting to show that he was no longer armed.
“He was neutralized in the sense that he did not present any danger. Frija walked after him and continued shooting him,” he stressed.
Moshe highlighted that his son had closed the distance between himself and the Hamas terrorists, risking his life to ensure that he did not hurt innocent civilians.
It is “against the Torah of Israel to shoot like that at a helpless person, who is raising his hands.
“I don’t understand why they are going to the public, raising funds, in order to get him out of a punishment,” he said, asking, “What about my son’s life, which was taken? This could have been prevented.”
Yonah Jeremy Bob contributed to this report.