Israel’s Parliament has passed a law imposing the death penalty on Palestinians convicted of fatal attacks. The legislation makes the death penalty the default punishment for Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied West Bank found guilty of intentionally carrying out deadly attacks deemed acts of terrorism by a military court. The law will not apply retroactively to any prisoners Israel currently holds, including the Hamas-led terrorists who attacked the country on the 7th of October in 2023, triggering the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip. However, media reports said the legislation, which will take effect in 30 days, is certain to face legal challenges that may stall its implementation.

 

Soon after the bill passed, the Association of Civil Rights in Israel said it had already petitioned Israel’s highest court to challenge the law. It called the legislation discriminatory by design and said the parliament had enacted it without legal authority over West Bank Palestinians, who are not Israeli citizens.

 

Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas, condemned the legislation as a breach of international law and a doomed bid meant to intimidate Palestinians. Israel has rarely used the death penalty, applying it only in exceptional cases. The Nazi war criminal Adolf Eichmann was the last person to be executed in 1962.