B'Tselem בצלם بتسيلم@btselem
While many countries are abolishing or reducing the use of the death penalty, Israel is doing the opposite, writing it into law. Israel’s Death Penalty Law institutionalizes and legalizes the state’s mechanism for executing Palestinians.
Since October 2023, Israel has killed at least 72,000 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, and at least 1,050 Palestinians in the West Bank. During this time, more than 80 Palestinian prisoners have died in Israeli prisons, which have turned into a network of torture camps where prisoners are subjected to continuous abuse and violence.
The death penalty law adds another official killing mechanism to existing practices.
The mass incarceration of Palestinians is a feature of Israel’s apartheid regime. As of March 2026, about 9,500 Palestinians are held in inhumane conditions in Israeli prisons, roughly half of them under administrative detention or as “unlawful combatants,” without trial and with no ability to defend themselves.
Death penalty for Palestinians only:
The law is worded to apply to Palestinians only, and it is set to make the killing of Palestinians a normalized, common punitive tool through several mechanisms:
The law gives military courts no discretion. Military judges will be required to sentence Palestinians convicted of murder to death, except in “special circumstances.” There is no requirement for a unanimous decision. A simple majority will suffice, and avenues for appeal will be extremely limited.
Only Palestinians are tried in military courts. Their conviction rate is 96%, based largely on “confessions” extracted under duress and torture during interrogations.
The penalty, execution by hanging, must be carried out within 90 days of sentencing, with no possibility of pardon. A designated prison officer will execute the sentence.
The law, which enjoys broad public support in Israel, is expected to pass in the Knesset tomorrow, Monday, 30 March. The Israel Prison Service has already begun preparing designated execution facilities.
The death penalty is a total violation of the most basic human rights, primarily, the right to life. Israel enforces a comprehensive policy of killing and oppression against the Palestinian people in all the territories it controls. The Death Penalty Law gives Israel’s apartheid regime yet another tool for advancing that policy.
