On March 30, 2026, the Israeli Knesset passed a law in its second and third readings, making death by hanging the default sentence for Palestinians convicted in military courts of deadly attacks.
The law passed with 62 votes in favour and was promoted by National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who wore noose-shaped lapel pins during the legislative process. The legislation is explicitly discriminatory, designed to apply to Palestinian prisoners while exempting Israeli citizens who commit similar crimes. Under the law, executions must be carried out within 90 days of sentencing, with no right to clemency or pardon.
Approximately 9,500 to 10,800 Palestinian prisoners are currently held in Israeli prisons and detention centres. Hundreds of these convicts are currently at imminent risk due to the new law, as they are facing life sentences. A minimum of 84 Palestinian detainees have died in Israeli detention since October 7, 2023, with a substantial number of them succumbing to torture, medical negligence and systematic abuse.
The Act breaches several international legal systems. Firstly, it infringes upon Article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which safeguards the right to life. Mandatory death sentences “violate the right to life” according to UN experts, as they eradicate judicial discretion, which prevents courts from considering mitigating factors or imposing proportionate sentences. Secondly, the law infringes upon Article 14 of the ICCPR, which ensures the right to a fair trial. Israeli military tribunals have a conviction rate that exceeds 99 per cent for Palestinian defendants. These trials are conducted in a language that is not widely understood, rely on coerced confessions and have severely restricted access to counsel. There is also secret evidence. Thirdly, the law exclusively targets Palestinians, thereby violating the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. Fourth, Article 14(5) of the ICCPR is violated by the denial of the right to appeal.
Finally, Palestinian human rights organizations have called the law a “war crime” under the Fourth Geneva Convention and the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, noting it constitutes “systematic, state-sanctioned killing” and a violation of protections owed to occupied peoples under international humanitarian law.
The most critical legal fact is that Israel has never abolished the death penalty and has not acceded to the Second Optional Protocol to the ICCPR, which obligates signatory states to abolish capital punishment in all circumstances. While Israel abolished the death penalty for ordinary civilian murders in 1954, it retained it for certain offences and has continued to apply it in practice against Palestinians. The international treaty prohibiting the death penalty is thus not binding on Israel. However, Israel remains bound by the ICCPR itself, which permits the death penalty only under strict conditions, none of which are satisfied here because Palestinian prisoners have not received fair trials. The UN has repeatedly called for a global moratorium on executions, but Israel has consistently ignored these calls. The new law represents an explicit rejection of the international trend toward abolition.
The new death penalty legislation in Israel is incompatible with fundamental human rights. The rule eliminates two crucial protections present in fair legal systems but absent in this one: first, that a majority verdict is not necessary for a conviction; and second, that judges are expressly forbidden from taking into account mitigating considerations such as age, mental state or coercion. There is a two-tiered court system in Israel, with one group facing execution and another not. This institutionalized prejudice amounts to the formal institutionalization of apartheid, as harsh restrictions are applied primarily to Palestinians.
Several mechanisms exist to halt the implementation of this law. A domestic group has appealed the decision to Israel’s highest court, claiming the statute is discriminatory and against the constitution. United Nations Special Rapporteurs have previously demanded the bill’s removal and their demands must be amplified if international diplomatic pressure is to be applied immediately. The world’s nations ought to do something. Important economic steps must be taken; the European Union must employ the human rights provision in its partnership agreement with Israel to enforce financial penalties. Suspending Israel’s Knesset from the Inter-Parliamentary Union is one step in pursuing diplomatic isolation. Quick action is needed to ensure legal accountability. The Palestinian Authority should take legal action by referring the matter to the International Criminal Court. UN member states should seek an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice. The UN Human Rights Council should form an independent fact-finding committee to investigate prison conditions in Israel.
Finally, every state that has ratified the Geneva Conventions has an obligation to ensure respect for international humanitarian law, they must convene to halt this law, which amounts to legalizing extrajudicial killing of Palestinians. The enactment of this law represents a dangerous shift. The world must act with urgency to prevent the first execution from taking place under this legislation.
—The writer is an international law expert and an internationally accredited arbitrator and mediator.
