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The legislation was passed on Monday with 62 lawmakers, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, voting in favour.
Palestinian prisoners, released as part of hostage-prisoner exchange, are welcomed by friends and relatives. (AFP file photo)
Israel’s parliament has approved a controversial bill that would allow the execution by hanging of Palestinians convicted of carrying out deadly attacks, in a move that has sparked sharp criticism and an immediate legal challenge.
The legislation was passed on Monday with 62 lawmakers, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, voting in favour, while 48 opposed it and one abstained.
The bill was championed by Israeli far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, who celebrated the outcome, writing on X, “We made history!!! We promised. We delivered.”
Under the new measure, the death penalty would become the default punishment for Palestinians in the occupied West Bank who are found guilty of intentionally carrying out attacks classified as terrorism by Israeli military courts. The law allows for the sentence to be reduced to life imprisonment under what it describes as “special circumstances”.
Palestinians in the West Bank are tried in Israeli military courts, while Israeli nationals, including Palestinian citizens of Israel and residents of East Jerusalem, are tried in civilian courts.
(With inputs from AFP)
March 31, 2026, 3:53 PM IST
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