Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, adopted on Monday evening a controversial law introducing the death penalty for individuals convicted of terrorism-related killings, a measure that, according to reports, is expected to apply only to Palestinians involved in anti-Israeli attacks, AFP reported.
The bill, proposed by far-right lawmakers, was approved in its third reading with 62 votes in favor and 48 against. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu voted in support of the legislation.
Shortly after the vote, a human rights organization announced it had filed an appeal with Israel’s Supreme Court challenging the law. The Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI) stated that the legislation is “unconstitutional, inherently discriminatory, and, regarding Palestinians in the West Bank, adopted without legal basis.”
Under the law’s general framework, any person who “intentionally causes the death of another with the aim of harming an Israeli citizen or resident, and with the intent to undermine the existence of the State of Israel,” may face either the death penalty or life imprisonment.
However, for Palestinians in the West Bank, the law establishes the death penalty as the default punishment if the killing is classified as an act of terrorism by Israeli military courts.
Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967. In this territory, Palestinians accused of crimes are tried in Israeli military courts, while Israeli settlers fall under the jurisdiction of civilian courts.
The law stipulates that executions could be carried out within 90 days of a final conviction, with a possible delay extending up to 180 days.
In February, Amnesty International urged Israeli lawmakers to reject the bill, arguing that it would enable courts to expand the use of capital punishment in a manner that discriminates against Palestinians.
The death penalty exists in Israeli law but has been applied only twice: in 1948, shortly after the establishment of the state, in the case of an army officer convicted of treason, and in 1962, when Nazi war criminal Adolf Eichmann was executed.
