Law on Death Penalty for Terrorists Comes into Force in Israel

JAKARTA - The head of the Israeli Central Command, Major General Avi Bluth, has signed an amendment to the West Bank security decree that will allow the implementation of a newly passed Israeli parliamentary law on the death penalty for terrorists.

"The death penalty law for terrorists comes into force... At the instruction of Israeli Defense Minister Katz, the commander of the Central Military District, Major General Avi Bluth, signed an amendment to the decree that will allow the death penalty to be applied to terrorists in Judea and Samaria (West Bank) in accordance with the provisions of the law," according to a statement from the Israeli Defense Ministry. reported by ANTARA from Sputnik, Monday, May 18.

The law represents a "clear and decisive change" in Israeli policy after the attack by the Palestinian movement Hamas on October 7, 2023, the ministry said.

In March, the Israeli parliament adopted a bill on the death penalty for terrorists, which many people both at home and abroad called discriminatory because of its ambiguous wording.

For example, from the formulation of the bill for the West Bank, it seems that the law will not apply to Israeli citizens or those with the status of residents of the Jewish state.

For Israel, it is proposed to amend the criminal code, by establishing that the death penalty or life imprisonment will be applied to individuals who "cause the death of a person with the intention of denying the existence of the State of Israel in the event of a terrorist attack."

The formulation shows that only crimes against the interests of Israel or its citizens will be considered terrorist attacks.