Israel's parliament ratified a law on Monday allowing the death penalty for Palestinians convicted of carrying out fatal attacks classified as terror. This legislation has been criticized for its perceived discriminatory nature and has already led to legal challenges.
The bill garnered support from 62 lawmakers, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, while 48 officials voted against it. The measure was spearheaded by Itamar Ben Gvir, the far-right Minister of National Security.
One lawmaker abstained from voting, with several members absent during the session.
In the lead-up to the vote, Ben Gvir displayed his advocacy for the proposal by wearing a lapel pin shaped like a noose.
After the bill's passage, he expressed on X, "We made history! We promised, and we delivered!"
Under the new law, the death penalty will be the standard punishment for Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied West Bank found guilty of intentionally committing attacks characterized as terrorism by an Israeli military court.
The legislation also stipulates that the death sentence could be commuted to life imprisonment under specific conditions.
Palestinians in the West Bank face trial in Israeli military courts, while Israeli criminal courts handle cases involving both Israelis and Palestinian residents, including those from East Jerusalem.
The law details that any individual who intentionally causes death to harm an Israeli citizen or resident with the intent to eradicate the State of Israel could be sentenced to either death or life imprisonment.
Furthermore, the bill specifies hanging as the method of execution, which must occur within 90 days following sentencing, although there may be a postponement of up to 180 days.
The legislation contradicts Israel's Basic Laws, which outlaw arbitrary discrimination. In response, a prominent human rights organization has filed a petition to annul the law in the Supreme Court.
The Association for Civil Rights in Israel released a statement saying, "The law creates two parallel systems, each aimed at Palestinians."
It further argued that military courts, overseeing West Bank Palestinians, impose a near-mandatory death penalty, while civilian courts' requirement that defendants acted with the intent to undermine Israel’s existence effectively excludes Jewish offenders.
The association is pushing for the law's annulment on both legal and constitutional grounds.
Miriam Azem, an international advocacy coordinator for the rights group Adalah, indicated that this law would exacerbate the existing abuses against Palestinians, an issue that has intensified since the outbreak of war in Gaza.
She pointed out, "The Supreme Court has demonstrated a significant level of tolerance for human rights violations regarding Palestinians. If the court does not intervene, it would reflect the current state of the Israeli judiciary."
During the parliamentary discussions, opposition lawmaker and former deputy Mossad chief Ram Ben Barak expressed vehement opposition to the legislation. "What does it mean that there is one law for Arabs in Judea and Samaria, and another for the wider public?" he questioned.
He added, "It signifies Hamas has defeated us because we have abandoned our values."
Lawmaker Limor Son Har-Melech, of Ben Gvir’s party, who had survived an attack by Palestinian militants that killed her husband, urged lawmakers to support the bill, stating, "For years, we have endured a brutal cycle of terror and reckless deal-making that returns these monsters to murder Jews again. Today, my friends, this cycle has come full circle."
The Palestinian Authority denounced the new law, asserting that "Israel has no sovereignty over Palestinian territory." They claimed that the law exposes the Israeli colonial agenda aimed at legitimizing extrajudicial killings.
The Palestinian movement Hamas criticized the law as reflective of Israel's aggressive stance based on "killing and terror."
Earlier this year, Amnesty International had called on Israeli legislators to reject the measure, highlighting its "discriminatory implementation against Palestinians."
On Sunday, Britain, France, Germany, and Italy expressed "deep concern" over the legislation, warning it could undermine Israel’s commitments to democratic norms.
While the death penalty is sanctioned for a few offenses in Israel, the country has essentially functioned as an abolitionist state since the execution of Adolf Eichmann, the Nazi war criminal, in 1962.
Israel has maintained control over the West Bank since the 1967 war, and violence in the region has escalated significantly since Hamas's attack on October 7, 2023, which provoked the ongoing Gaza conflict.
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