Israel's Knesset has passed a law imposing the death penalty for the murder of Israelis
Israel's Knesset has passed a law allowing the death penalty—execution by hanging—to be imposed on Palestinians convicted of murdering Israeli citizens.
Al Jazeera reports on this.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu personally supported the initiative during the vote, which marked a victory for the country’s far-right forces. The new provisions are not retroactive and will apply exclusively to future court cases.
Under the approved law, Israeli courts have also been granted the authority to impose the death penalty or life imprisonment on their own citizens. Human rights organizations in Israel and Palestine have already condemned this decision, calling it draconian and unlikely to deter future attacks. The law is expected to be challenged in the Israeli Supreme Court in the near future. Thus, the country is introducing a radical punishment that has caused significant controversy both domestically and internationally.
Earlier, the Israeli parliament—the Knesset—passed a bill in its first reading that requires courts to impose the death penalty on terrorists convicted of killing Israeli citizens.
The foreign ministers of Germany, France, Italy, and the United Kingdom expressed deep concern regarding the consideration in Israel of a bill that would expand the scope of the death penalty.
