Israeli parliament advances bill legalising death penalty for Palestinians

The Israeli Parliament had advanced a bill in a first reading that allows the courts to impose Palestinians accused of involvement in the October 7, 2023, event. The bill was passed on Monday with 19 votes in support of it, as reported by Israeli broadcaster KAN. According to the broadcaster, the bill was introduced by Justice Minister Yariv Levin of the ruling Likud party, Constitution Committee Chairman Simcha Rothman of the far-right Religious Zionism party, and Yisrael Beiteinu lawmaker Yulia Malinovsky, according to the broadcaster

The bill proposes a mandate for a separate judicial mechanism to prosecute hundreds of civilian that are accused of being part of the October 7, 2023, attack. The attack was considered one of the biggest security failures in the history of Israel. The draft mandates a dedicated court chaired by a retired district court judge, with broad authority in the cases of genocide, state sovereignty, aiding the enemy during wartime, and terrorism-related offences.

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The draft legislation makes provisions for capital punishment as well as denies any provisions for appeal, and bars the defendants tried under this framework from any future prisoner exchange or political negotiations. It also mandates live recording and broadcast of the court proceedings on a designated website and maintaining a record of these proceedings in the state archive.

The bill is going to be processed for the Parliament's Constitution Committee, then it will pass through two more readings to become binding. Israeli authorities have not released the details of Palestinians held in relation to the October 7 event. The far-right Israeli minister responsible for prisons, Itamar Ben-Gvir, has proudly declared that conditions have gotten harsher for Palestinian prisoners under his watch.

“The move towards legal execution legalises actions already practised by the [Israeli] occupation, but without accountability,” said Saeed al-Awiwi, a Palestinian lawyer and former judge. He claimed that the new law is the latest clampdown on the legal rights of the Palestinian. Under the Geneva Convention or International Humanitarian Law, execution of a prisoner of war or protected person, including those under occupation, is prohibited.

Eventhough the death toll varies widely, more than 71,400 Palestinians were killed, and over 171,000 were injured in the deadly war that ensued after October 7, 2023.