Gaza Herald_ Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir handed out sweets inside the Knesset on Monday after lawmakers advanced a bill that would allow the death penalty to be imposed exclusively on Palestinian prisoners. The measure, which passed its first reading, marks one of the most extreme escalations in Israel’s policies toward Palestinians.
The bill received 39 votes in favor out of the 120-seat parliament, with 16 legislators opposing it. If enacted, the law would permit Israeli judges to sentence Palestinians to death if they are convicted of killing Israelis on what Israel describes as “nationalistic” grounds.
Crucially, the legislation does not apply to Israelis who kill Palestinians, even under identical circumstances.
With one reading completed, the bill must now pass two additional votes in the Knesset before becoming law.
Palestinian resistance groups strongly condemned the move. Hamas described the measure as “fascist and sadistic,” calling for urgent international intervention and “deterrent sanctions” against Israel. The Islamic Jihad movement similarly denounced it as “a dangerous criminal escalation” that exposes Israel’s disregard for Palestinian life.
The bill was first approved the previous week by the Knesset’s National Security Committee, with four lawmakers voting in favor and one opposed, clearing the way for Monday’s parliamentary vote.
Israeli security officials had long warned against adopting such a law, arguing it could endanger Israeli captives held by Palestinian factions in Gaza. But after Hamas released the remaining living captives last month, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly withdrew his objections.
According to Gal Hirsch, Israel’s Coordinator for Prisoners and Missing Persons, the earlier warnings had “become irrelevant.” He claimed the legislation would serve as “a tool in the toolbox” to combat what Israel calls terrorism and pressure for the release of Israeli captives.
Israel’s treatment of Palestinian detainees has long been condemned by human rights groups, and concerns have intensified dramatically since 7 October 2023. Arrests, extrajudicial executions, and reports of systematic torture have risen to unprecedented levels.
Human rights organizations, both Palestinian and international, document that Israeli forces have subjected Palestinian detainees to severe physical violence, sexual assault, starvation, and medical neglect, leading to the deaths of at least 80 prisoners in custody.
These deaths have occurred amid accusations of widespread abuse inside Israeli prisons, interrogation centers, and military camps.
A joint position paper issued by several major Palestinian human rights organizations warned that the death penalty bill represents a “grave escalation” in Israel’s long-standing violations.
They highlighted the contradiction in Israel’s public image:
Israel markets itself as a state that has abolished the death penalty for ordinary crimes, yet it has never fully removed the punishment from its legal system. In practice, the organizations stressed, Israel continues to carry out extrajudicial executions through various means.
The groups emphasized that because the proposed law applies only to Palestinians, it further exposes what they describe as Israel’s apartheid regime, under which punitive measures and legal standards differ based solely on ethnicity.
“No Israeli who kills a Palestinian,” the statement noted, “would ever face the death penalty.”
Thousands Held — With Many Still Unaccounted For
Currently, an estimated 9,250 Palestinian prisoners are incarcerated across 23 Israeli prisons, detention centers, and interrogation facilities.
This figure does not include the Palestinians seized from Gaza and held in military camps, whose numbers remain unknown due to Israel’s refusal to disclose information or allow international monitoring.
