Sixty-two lawmakers, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, voted in favor and 48 against the bill, championed by Israeli Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir. Israeli Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir, center, and lawmakers celebrate after parliament passed a law approving the death penalty for Palestinians convicted of murdering Israelis in Jerusalem on Monday. The bill would make the death penalty the default punishment for Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied West Bank found guilty of intentionally carrying out deadly attacks deemed “acts of terrorism” by an Israeli military court. The bill says that the sentence can be reduced to life imprisonment under “special circumstances.”Palestinians in the West Bank are automatically tried in Israeli military courts. “The law creates two parallel tracks, both designed to apply to Palestinians,” the Association for Civil Rights in Israel said in a statement.

Source: Taipei Times April 01, 2026 03:46 UTC