Israel passes death penalty law amid global criticism and concern

Israeli Parliament Approves Death Penalty for Palestinians

The Israeli Knesset has passed a legislation making the death penalty by hanging the default punishment for Palestinians in the occupied West Bank who have been found guilty of killing Israelis. The law was championed by National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and was approved with 62 votes to 48.

Human rights groups, including the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, have filed an appeal against the law with Israel’s Supreme Court. The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has condemned the legislation as a “dangerous escalation,” stating that “Israel has no sovereignty over Palestinian land” in the occupied territory.

The Palestinian group Hamas has also expressed strong opposition to the law, calling it a “dangerous precedent that threatens the lives” of Palestinians held in Israeli prisons. The group has urged the international community, including the United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross, to take immediate action to protect Palestinian prisoners from Israel’s “brutality.”

The UN Human Rights Office in Palestine has called on Israel to “immediately repeal the discriminatory death penalty law,” noting that it violates the country’s obligations under international law. The office stated that the implementation of this new law would violate international law’s prohibition of cruel, inhuman or degrading punishment.

Other rights organizations have also condemned the legislation, including the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR), which has called on the international community to “urgently intervene” in defense of Palestinian prisoners. The PCHR stated that the law targets Palestinians and entrenches Israel’s long-standing policy of extrajudicial execution under the guise of law.

The legislation comes amid a surge in Israeli military and settler attacks against Palestinians in the West Bank, as well as thousands of arrests, in the shadow of Israel’s ongoing conflict with Gaza.

Source: Al Jazeera