Amnesty International has criticised the passing of the first reading of a controversial new amendment to the Israeli Penal Law, making it mandatory for Israeli courts to impose the death penalty against individuals convicted of killing an Israeli “either intentionally or recklessly,” calling it a law “exclusively against Palestinians.”
The current bill must pass a second and third reading before becoming law.
The new amendment calls for the death penalty if the act is motivated by “racism or hostility towards the public” and “committed to harm the state of Israel or the rebirth of the Jewish people.”
The amendment to the penal code, proposed by far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, was approved by 39 votes to 16 in the 120-member Knesset on Monday. Ben-Gvir, who has long advocated for the execution of Palestinian detainees, was seen distributing sweets in celebration after the Knesset passed the first draft of the bill.
“There is no sugarcoating this; a majority of 39 Israeli Knesset members approved in a first reading a bill that effectively mandates courts to impose the death penalty exclusively against Palestinians. While the text of the bill does not specifically single out Palestinians, the mental element required for the offence concerned signals its primary victims are going to be Palestinians and would include those who committed the punishable offences before the law is passed,” Amnesty International’s Senior Director for Research, Advocacy, Policy and Campaigns, Erika Guevara Rosas, said.
“Knesset members should be working to abolish the death penalty, not broadening its application. The death penalty is the ultimate cruel, inhuman, and degrading punishment, and an irreversible denial of the right to life.”
Amnesty International opposes the death penalty in all cases without exception, regardless of the crime, the guilt, innocence, or other characteristics of the individual, or the method used. As of today, 113 countries have abolished the death penalty for all crimes, including seven since 2020.
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