Israeli MPs cheer death penalty for Palestinians accused of terrorism
Israel's parliament passed a law mandating death penalty for Palestinians accused of terrorism without right to appeal, drawing international criticism.
The Israeli Knesset has passed a controversial law imposing the death penalty on Palestinians accused of terrorist acts aimed at "ending Israel's existence". The legislation was approved 62-47 and has been criticized by rights groups, foreign nations, and the UN for its discriminatory nature and disproportionate targeting of Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.
Under the law, those convicted would be executed by hanging within 90 days of sentencing, with no right to clemency. Judges can only commute death sentences to life imprisonment under unspecified "special circumstances". In the West Bank, cases would be tried in military courts, while in Israel they would be processed under criminal law.
National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir was filmed celebrating the law's passage in the parliamentary chamber, calling it a "day of justice for the victims and a day of deterrence for our enemies". Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu voted for the legislation but did not join the celebrations. The office of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas stated that such laws "will not break the will of the Palestinian people".
The law has drawn significant international condemnation. Germany, France, the UK, Italy, and Australia issued a joint statement expressing "deep concern" about the legislation's "de facto discriminatory nature". UN experts warned in February that Israeli military trials of civilians typically don't meet fair trial standards, noting that "denial of a fair trial is also a war crime". Israel abolished the death penalty for murder in 1954, with the only execution carried out being Nazi Holocaust architect Adolf Eichmann in 1962 on genocide charges.
