Over years of failed attempts to revive capital punishment in Israel, legislation stalled — until now. On Monday the Knesset passed the Penal Bill (Amendment — Death Penalty for Terrorists), making a contentious revival of the death penalty law.
Background
Israel has retained a limited death-penalty framework since its founding: the death penalty was abolished in 1954 for ordinary crimes and in peacetime, but remained permissible for war crimes and, in certain circumstances, crimes against humanity or against the Jewish people and under martial law. Only two executions have taken place in Israel’s history: Meir Tobianski in 1948, later posthumously exonerated, and Adolf Eichmann in 1962. On the rare occasions military courts sentenced people to death for terrorism-related offenses, sentences were commuted to life following appeals.
The new push followed the Hamas-led attacks of October 7, 2023, after which several lawmakers argued that the public mood justified harsher penalties for terrorism. Opponents said the measure was unethical, unconstitutional and discriminatory toward Palestinians.
What the law says
The bill declares its purpose to “establish the death penalty for terrorists who carried out murderous terror attacks, as part of the fight against terrorism.” It defines the offense as intentionally causing another’s death with the aim of harming an Israeli citizen or resident and rejecting the State of Israel’s existence; the sentence for such an offense is death or life imprisonment, and in some cases only death.
The law creates two tracks: criminal courts within Israel and military courts in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Palestinians in the occupied West Bank convicted of terrorism by military courts face a mandatory death sentence — “his sentence shall be death, and this penalty only.” Only if a court finds “special reasons” may the sentence be commuted to life, reversing the prior de facto practice in which death sentences were not carried out. Under the new law consensus among judges is no longer required; a simple majority will suffice, and appeals are tightly constrained.
Human rights groups have warned about the military courts’ conviction record. Israeli NGO B’Tselem notes roughly 96% conviction rates in these courts, based largely on confessions extracted under duress or torture, while a Knesset legal adviser, Ido Ben‑Itzhak, criticized the bill for lacking provisions for pardons and for conflicting with international conventions.
Implementation
The law is not retroactive and will not apply to alleged perpetrators of the October 7 attacks. A separate proposed law — the Tribunals Law (Prosecution of Participants in the October 7 Massacre Events Bill) — could still create a special military tribunal empowered to impose capital punishment for participation in those attacks.
Under the new measure the Israel Prison Service must carry out the death sentence within 90 days; the prime minister may petition the sentencing court to delay execution by up to 180 days. Executions will be by hanging and carried out by a prison service corrections officer.
Who pushed the law
The bill was sponsored by the far-right Jewish Power (Otzma Yehudit) party, with backing from segments of Netanyahu’s Likud and from Yisrael Beitenu. Itamar Ben‑Gvir, Jewish Power’s leader and minister of national security, was a leading advocate, turning the issue into a populist campaign and adopting a widely noted golden noose lapel pin. Critics say the push is tied to election politics. Human rights organizations and watchdogs have also reported increased abuse and torture in Israeli prisons and military detention centers during Ben‑Gvir’s tenure; HaMoked reported at least 94 Palestinian detainees and prisoners died in Israeli custody from the start of the war until August 2025.
Parliamentary vote and legal challenges
The final Knesset vote was 62 in favor, 48 opposed; the remainder abstained or were absent. The new law could still be revised by lawmakers or struck down by the Israeli Supreme Court.
Opposition and international reaction
Opposition came from many quarters: Israeli opposition lawmakers, security officials, rabbis, doctors, Israeli and Palestinian human rights groups. Ramallah-based lawyer Sahar Francis called the law “very dangerous,” saying it would effectively apply only to Palestinians and violate international humanitarian law because Israel cannot impose the death penalty on an occupied population. Israeli opposition lawmaker Gilad Kariv condemned the measure as “miserable, crude, immoral and irrational” and warned of consequences for Israeli hostages. B’Tselem described the law as enshrining the dehumanization of Palestinians.
UN Human Rights Council experts urged Israel to withdraw the bill, saying it would violate the right to life and discriminate against Palestinians in occupied territory. The European Union said the measure was deeply concerning and reiterated its opposition to capital punishment in all cases.
Edited by: Helen Whittle
Editor’s note: This article was originally published on March 30, 2026, before Israel’s parliament passed the death penalty law. The report was edited and expanded after the law’s passing in the evening of March 30.