Israeli Knesset committee approves death penalty bill for Palestinian prisoners
The Israeli Knesset’s National Security Committee voted Sunday to advance a bill that would impose the death penalty on Palestinian prisoners, paving the way for its first reading in the full parliament.
The measure was approved by a 4–1 vote, despite objections from the committee’s legal adviser, who argued that the vote could not be held during the Knesset’s recess. The committee’s legal department later warned the decision was “null and void,” noting that security and professional bodies had not been consulted, as required.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his envoy for hostages, Gal Hirsch, had pushed to confine deliberations to the security cabinet, but the committee pressed ahead with the session. Opposition lawmakers denounced the move as “illegal.”
The bill now heads to the Knesset plenum for its first reading, though legal disputes over the process are expected to continue.