The Palestinian Authority condemned Monday’s passing of a law in the Knesset mandating the death penalty for West Bank Palestinians convicted of carrying out deadly terror attacks, saying it violated international law, while Palestinian terror groups urged further attacks to retaliate for the legislation.
Israeli lawmakers voted 62-47 to mandate death by hanging as the default punishment for West Bank residents convicted of deadly terrorist acts by military courts. While judges can opt for life imprisonment under vaguely defined “special circumstances,” the death penalty would otherwise be mandatory and be carried out within 90 days of sentencing.
The vote marked a major victory for far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, whose Otzma Yehudit party has long championed the legislation and who immediately handed out champagne as members of the coalition celebrated its passage following nearly twelve hours of debate.
Shortly after the law’s passage, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas condemned the legislation as a breach of international law and a doomed bid meant to intimidate Palestinians.
“Such laws and measures will not break the will of the Palestinian people or undermine their steadfastness,” Abbas’ office said in a statement.
Get The Times of Israel’s Daily Edition
by email and never miss our top stories
By signing up, you agree to the terms
“Nor will they deter them from continuing their legitimate struggle for freedom, independence, and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital.”
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir celebrates the passing of the death penalty law for Palestinian terrorists in the Knesset, March 30, 2026. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
His office further stated that the legislation violates international and humanitarian law and the Fourth Geneva Convention, saying that it “constitutes a war crime against the Palestinian people and comes in the context of policies and steps of escalation that the occupation government is taking in all Palestinian territories, including the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and East Jerusalem.”
Abbas’s office thanked European countries for also condemning the law and called for imposing sanctions on Israel for its treatment of Palestinian prisoners.
In a post on X, the PA’s Foreign Ministry said that “Israel has no sovereignty over Palestinian land,” adding, “This law once again reveals the nature of the Israeli colonial system, which seeks to legitimize extrajudicial killing under legislative cover.”
Palestinian terror groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad called on Palestinians to carry out attacks in retaliation for the law.
In a statement following its passage, Hamas said the measure “reflects the bloody nature of the occupation and its approach based on murder and terror,” adding that it exposes Israel’s claims of supporting human rights as false.
“This fascist law embodies the mentality of criminal gangs and their bloodthirstiness, and sets a dangerous precedent that threatens the lives of our prisoners in the occupation’s prisons,” Hamas’s statement added.
Screengrabs of a video posted to National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir’s Telegram page on October 31, 2025, showing him next to tied-up Palestinian prisoners. (Telegram)
Hamas threatened Israel, saying it will “be met with a response befitting the magnitude of their crimes.”
The Jordanian Foreign Ministry issued a strong condemnation, calling the legislation a “violation of international law and humanitarian law.”
Rights groups also condemned the law.
The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) wrote on X that the law “targets Palestinians and entrenches Israel’s long-standing policy of extrajudicial execution under the guise of law, in clear violation of international human rights and humanitarian law.”
The PCHR called on the international community to take action against Israel, saying, “Silence and inaction will only further deepen impunity and erode the rules-based international order.”
Speaking to the New York Times, Suhad Bishara, a lawyer with the Palestinian rights group Adalah, said, “By design, this legislation exclusively targets Palestinians, violating the fundamental principle of equality and prohibition on racial discrimination.”
Earlier on Monday, ahead of the vote, the foreign ministers of Germany, France, Italy and Britain urged Israeli lawmakers to abandon the measure.
“We are particularly worried about the de facto discriminatory character of the bill. The adoption of this bill would risk undermining Israel’s commitments to democratic principles,” the ministers said in a statement shared by the German Foreign Office.
Handcuffed Hamas terrorists sit next to a picture of Palestinians walking past destroyed buildings in the Gaza Strip and an Israeli flag, in a prison in central Israel, May 6, 2025. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
After the law was passed, the US notably refrained from issuing a condemnation, something that would have been expected under most previous administrations.
“The United States respects Israel’s sovereign right to determine its own laws and penalties for individuals convicted of terrorism,” a State Department spokesperson said in a statement sent to reporters.
“We trust that any such measures will be carried out with a fair trial and respect for all applicable fair trial guarantees and protections,” the statement added.
In Israel, the Arab-majority Hadash–Ta’al party said in a statement, “This law is not merely a punitive measure — it is an official declaration of the institutionalization of apartheid and racism, and the transformation of the legal system into yet another tool in the violent political repression of the Palestinian people.”
The Association for Civil Rights in Israel also announced that it would petition the court, arguing that the Knesset does not have the authority to pass legislation that applies to the Palestinian population of the West Bank since Israel does not formally hold sovereignty there, and because under the relevant international laws, which Israel largely recognizes, legislative authority lies with the military commander.
“While the Knesset has previously legislated to apply Israeli law to Israeli settlers, this law is categorically different: it applies to the protected Palestinian population,” ACRI said in a statement.
Ben Gvir, who was convicted in 2007 of racist incitement against Arabs and support for the Kach group , which is on Israeli and US terrorism blacklists, has overseen an overhaul of prisons that has led to allegations of abuse of Palestinian prisoners.
He made capital punishment for Palestinian terrorists a main pledge in his 2022 election campaign and since taking office has publicly backed some Israeli soldiers being probed for suspected excessive force against Palestinians.
You appreciate our wartime journalism
You clearly find our careful reporting of the Iran war valuable, at a time when facts are often distorted and news coverage often lacks context.
Your support is essential to continue our work. We want to continue delivering the professional journalism you value, even as the demands on our newsroom have grown dramatically during this ongoing conflict.
So today, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. For as little as $6 a month you’ll become our partners while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.
Thank you,
David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel