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World
Israel's parliament approved legislation Monday evening to execute Palestinian prisoners involved in the October 7, 2023 attack, based on charges from a special military court.
With 93 votes in favor, the Israeli Knesset passed a law Monday evening enabling the execution of Palestinian prisoners who participated in the October 7, 2023 attack. The legislation, dubbed “Trial of Elite Terrorists,” specifically targets members of Hamas’s military wing elite units involved in the assault. Charges will be filed by a special military court.
The law establishes a legal foundation for what the newspaper *Yedioth Ahronoth* described as “unprecedented trials, the largest and most significant in Israel.” It empowers the court to impose the death penalty for murder and rape, citing existing statutes such as the Genocide Prevention Law and the Anti-Terrorism Law.
According to *Yedioth Ahronoth*, individuals sentenced to death or charged with a capital crime cannot be released as part of future prisoner exchange deals. A dedicated military court will be set up in Jerusalem, with indictments expected against more than 400 people. Each judicial panel will consist of three judges, at least one of whom must be a president of a military court.
The newspaper further reported that in most trial sessions, defendants will not appear physically in court. Instead, they will follow proceedings via technological means from within prisons. Meanwhile, Israeli families of the dead and wounded will have the opportunity to observe the hearings from a separate room or through digital broadcast.
Arab and Islamic countries have condemned the Knesset’s law regarding the execution of prisoners. A general strike has been declared in the West Bank in protest against the “Execution of Prisoners” law.
