For years, previous attempts to revive the death penalty in Israel\nhave always failed. On Monday night (30\/03) local time, Israel\u2019s\nParliament, the Knesset, passed the Penal Bill, which is an amendment to\nthe death penalty for terrorists.<\/p>\n
Previously, the death penalty existed only for war crimes. This\npenalty was abolished in 1954 for common crimes, but technically still\npermitted for crimes against humanity or against the Jewish people, as\nwell as in certain circumstances under military law.<\/p>\n
In the rare cases where the death penalty was imposed by military\ncourts for terrorism-related violations, the sentence was always\ncommuted to life imprisonment after the appeals process.<\/p>\n
However, following the Hamas-led attack on 7 October 2023, new\npressure emerged from Israeli parliament members to reinstate the death\npenalty for Palestinians convicted by both military courts and Israel\u2019s\ncriminal courts.<\/p>\n
Supporters of the bill argue that harsher penalties are needed after\nthe 7 October attack. Meanwhile, opponents of the bill call the\nregulation unethical, unconstitutional, and racist because it\ndifferentiates between Israeli Jewish citizens and Palestinian\nresidents.<\/p>\n
As many as 62 out of 120 Knesset members voted to approve the bill,\nincluding Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, while 48 other members\nrejected it. The rest abstained or were absent. In theory, the new law\ncould still be revised or overturned by Israel\u2019s Supreme Court.<\/p>\n
Since the founding of the State of Israel, only two people have ever\nbeen executed after being sentenced to death. The first in 1948, when\nMeir Tobianski, a military officer wrongly accused of being a spy, was\nexecuted for treason and later exonerated posthumously. The second in\n1962, when Adolf Eichmann, a key figure in the German Nazi Party, was\nexecuted after a lengthy trial in Jerusalem.<\/p>\n
Contents of the new death penalty law<\/p>\n
According to the text of the bill, the purpose of this law is \u201cto\nestablish the death penalty for terrorists who carry out terror attacks\nthat kill victims, as part of efforts to combat terrorism.\u201d<\/p>\n
It is also stated that \u201ca person who intentionally causes the death\nof another person with the aim of endangering Israeli citizens or\nresidents, with the intent to deny the existence of the State of Israel,\nshall be punished by death or life imprisonment, and only one of the two\npenalties.\u201d<\/p>\n
The law has two different tracks, for criminal courts in Israel and\nfor military courts in the occupied West Bank. Those military courts are\nunder Israeli military administration and only try Palestinians living\nin that area.<\/p>\n
Palestinians in the West Bank who are convicted of terrorism by\nmilitary courts will face mandatory death penalty, or in the bill\u2019s\ntext, \u201c\u2026 the penalty is death, and that is the only penalty.\u201d<\/p>\n
Only if the court finds \u201cspecial reasons,\u201d the death penalty can be\ncommuted to life imprisonment, the opposite of the usual practice in\nmilitary courts so far. Unanimous agreement from all judges is no longer\nrequired; a simple majority is sufficient, and the appeals route is very\nlimited.<\/p>\n
Before the law was passed, the Israeli human rights organisation\nB\u2019Tselem stated that \u201cthese military courts have a conviction rate of\naround 96%, mostly based on \u2018confessions\u2019 obtained through pressure and\ntorture during interrogation.\u201d<\/p>\n
Knesset legal advisor Ido BenItzhak criticised the bill before it was\npassed, saying that the regulation \u201cdoes not provide a pardon mechanism\nfor those sentenced to death, which contradicts international\nconventions and could cause problems.\u201d<\/p>\n
Implementation of the law<\/p>\n
The death penalty will not be applied retroactively (not applicable\nto cases occurring before the regulation takes effect) or to suspects in\nthe 7 October attack.<\/p>\n
However, a separate bill could still be submitted to the Knesset.\nThat bill, called the Tribunal Law (Draft Bill for Prosecuting\nParticipants in the 7 October Massacre Event), would establish a special\nmilitary tribunal that could impose the death penalty on those accused\nof involvement in the 7 October attack.<\/p>\n
Israel\u2019s Prison Service (IPS) is required to carry out executions\nwithin 90 days. The prime minister may request a delay in execution to\nthe court that imposed the sentence, but not more than 180 days.\nExecutions will be carried out by hanging by prison officers.<\/p>\n
Who supports this law?<\/p>\n
The bill was sponsored by members of the far-right Jewish Power\n(Otzma Yehudit) party, with support from members of Netanyahu\u2019s Likud\nParty and the conservative Yisrael Beitenu party.<\/p>\n
Itamar Ben Gvir, head of Jewish Power and National Security Minister,\nis one of the main figures pushing for the death penalty. He has made it\na populist campaign and even wore a gold noose-shaped pin during the\ncampaign.<\/p>\n
During Ben Gvir\u2019s tenure, Israeli human rights groups like Physicians\nfor Human Rights have reported a sharp increase in cases of torture and\nabuse in prisons and military detention centres. According to HaMoked,\nan Israeli human rights NGO, at least 94 Palestinians, both security\ndetainees and prisoners, have died in Israeli prisons or military\ndetention facilities since the war began until August 2025.<\/p>\n
Opposition to the death penalty<\/p>\n
Criticism has come from various parties in Israel and the occupied\nPalestinian territories. Opponents include Israeli opposition members,\nsecurity officials, rabbis, doctors, as well as Israeli and Palestinian\nhuman rights groups.<\/p>\n
Sahar Francis, a Palestinian lawyer based in Ramallah, called the\nbill \u201cvery dangerous.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThis law reflects that Israel is heading towards a fascist state\nbecause this law will be highly discriminatory,\u201d she said. She explained\nthat the regulation in practice will only apply<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/understanding-israels-new-death-penalty-law-1774958107", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }