Israel Passes Death Penalty Law Targeting Palestinians in Military Courts

Israel's parliament has approved a controversial new law establishing hanging as the default sentence for Palestinians convicted in military courts of carrying out deadly attacks. The legislation, championed by far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, fulfills a long-standing promise made by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition partners.

The law applies to individuals convicted of killings intended to undermine Israel's existence. Critics argue the wording effectively targets Palestinians and Arab citizens of Israel while exempting Jewish Israelis who commit comparable acts, raising serious concerns about systemic discrimination embedded in the legal framework.

Under the new measure, executions must be carried out within 90 days of sentencing, with limited delays permitted and no right to seek clemency. Life imprisonment remains an alternative, but only under unspecified exceptional circumstances. Israel had previously abolished the death penalty for murder in 1954, with the 1962 execution of Nazi war criminal Adolf Eichmann being the country's sole civilian execution on record.

The legislation has triggered widespread condemnation internationally. Foreign ministers from Germany, France, Italy, and the United Kingdom described the law as having a de facto discriminatory nature against Palestinians, warning it undermines Israel's democratic foundations. A group of United Nations experts also raised alarms over vague definitions of terrorism within the text, suggesting the death penalty could be applied to conduct that falls outside genuine terrorist activity.

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas denounced the law as a violation of international law, while militant groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad called for retaliatory attacks. Israeli human rights organizations filed an immediate Supreme Court appeal, with legal experts questioning the law's constitutionality.

Globally, 113 countries have abolished the death penalty, and leading human rights organizations maintain there is no evidence capital punishment deters violent crime more effectively than life imprisonment.