Israeli law for execution of Palestinian prisoners goes into force in West Bank

An Israeli law allowing the execution of Palestinian prisoners took effect Sunday, local media reported.

Maj. Gen. Avi Bluth, the head of the army’s Central Command, signed the military order necessary to enact the measure in the occupied West Bank, according to The Times of Israel.

Under the military order, courts presiding over cases involving attacks that resulted in Israeli deaths must apply the death penalty as “the only available sentence” unless the court finds “special circumstances” allowing for life imprisonment instead.

The Israeli newspaper Haaretz​​​​​​​ reported that the order grants courts in the occupied West Bank the authority to issue death sentences against Palestinians convicted of killing Israelis on grounds linked to the “denial of the existence of the State of Israel.”

The newspaper said the wording of the law makes its application almost exclusively directed at Palestinians, arguing that the ideological proof requirements included in the legislation make applying it to extremist Jewish attackers “difficult or nearly impossible.”

Haaretz also reported that Israeli legal and security professionals expressed concern over applying Knesset legislation in the occupied West Bank to people who do not hold Israeli citizenship.

During discussions Sunday in the Knesset National Security Committee, legal officials warned that applying civilian legislation in the occupied territory represented a major departure from longstanding Israeli policy, according to the newspaper.

The law was passed by the Knesset in March, making the death penalty the default punishment for Palestinians accused of carrying out lethal attacks against Israelis.

Last week, the Knesset approved legislation establishing a special military court for what Israel claims are elite unit members of the Palestinian group Hamas involved in the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks.

More than 9,600 Palestinians, including 350 children and 73 women, are currently held in Israeli prisons and face torture, starvation and medical neglect, according to Palestinian and Israeli rights organizations.