Israel passes law to give death penalty to Palestinians – The Latest

0:00This is The Guardian.

0:11The kind of key concern with this law, really, is that it is sort of discriminatory because it effectively applies only to Palestinians, even though in theory it doesn't. In practice, that's what will happen.

0:28We had these scenes that some were so incredibly unedifying of these celebrations, champagne being given out. How much this Israeli government pays heed to international opinion is a big question. Israel has passed a new law to give the death penalty to Palestinians convicted of lethal attacks in a measure that has been roundly condemned by European countries and human rights groups. From the Guardians today in Focus, this is The Latest with me, Lucy Half.

1:00I'm joined by Devika Batt, the Guardians Deputy Head of International News. Devika, it's lovely to have you back with us. Thanks for dialing in. So yesterday in the Israeli Parliament, a new law was passed that's been under consideration, that's had several readings for some time that authorises the death penalty executions against Palestinians who are accused of committing deadly attacks against Israelis. We'll come on to what this means for Palestinians but first of all just talk to me about the way this legislation was introduced and what it means in practice. Thanks Lucy, yeah. So this is legislation that passed the Knesset yesterday.

1:44So it was in its sort of final reading that passed 62 votes to I think 48 in favour. And one of those who voted in favour was the Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. And what it does is it, as you say, sort of effectively makes the death penalty, the kind of default punishment for Palestinians in the occupied West Bank who are convicted of terrorism, of sort of deadly terror attacks. Yeah, I mean, it's a bit of a kind of, you know, seminal moment really for Israel. Yeah, it is a seminal moment and a deeply and profoundly worrying one, not least for Palestinians living in the occupied West Bank who are often detained for very long, sometimes indefinite periods of time, denied access to a fair trial.

2:36Well, for them now, they could also face this new risk of being charged with the death penalty under this new legislation. Yeah, so all sorts of concerns have been raised by human rights groups inside and outside of Israel about the treatment of prisoners, as you say, in these prisons, because their access to due process is questionable at the least. and there are allegations of torture. We've reported on such allegations in the past. And yeah, what this does, and the kind of key concern with this law really is that it is sort of discriminatory because it effectively applies only to Palestinians in sort of, even though in theory it doesn't, in practice that's what will happen.

3:26It applies to the jurisdiction in the West Bank where military courts sort of operate and apply, and therefore by default that would apply largely to Palestinians. There is a sort of provision in Israeli civil courts for the death penalty to be sort of given. And so in theory that could apply to Israeli citizens, you know, regardless of their sort of ethnic background. But the threat of the death penalty is only applied if the crime is deemed to be a threat to the, quote, existence of the state of Israel. So again, by default, that would largely apply to Palestinians, is what a lot of rights groups are saying.

4:09I mean, Devika, I think one of the most shocking aspects of the way this played out yesterday was the images and the videos that we saw from inside the Knesset, the Israeli parliament. We had an address from the National Security Minister, Itamar Ben-Gavir, who is this very extreme member of the far right side of Netanyahu's cabinet, who has used some of the most extreme language against Gaza, the Palestinian people living in Gaza, but has also been very instrumental in driving this legislation through. He was seen in the Knesset yesterday sort of brandishing champagne. He posted on social media, we've made history.

4:51he has been for some time now wearing a lapel pin in the shape of a noose so I mean clearly he has been very influential in getting this passed. Yeah absolutely he sort of campaigned on this it was one of the things he has long sort of sought and has made very clear publicly that it's something he's long sought and as you say he you know we had these scenes that some would so incredibly edifying of what you know what these celebrations um champagne being given out badges with nooses on them um and you know that speaks to the method that could be used if this does go ahead which could well be hanging because um Israeli doctors have sort of said they won't prescribe the lethal injection which would be one of the other methods so um yeah hanging could well end up being the method that's used oh appalling and there has been widespread condemnation from other governments.

5:48There was a joint statement from the UK, from France, from Germany, criticising the legislation, saying that this will significantly expand the possibilities for imposing the death penalty. We talk all the time about the way that Israel is so often able to act with impunity, but is there anything that can be done sort of internationally, do you think, to stop this happening, or within Israel? So within Israel itself, the next stage is that this will go to the Supreme Court, the Israeli Supreme Court, which, you know, in theory could strike it down. And, you know, the Israeli Supreme Court has been something that the prime minister, for example, Netanyahu, has in the past looked to to try to kind of curtail.

6:33In the last few years, there have been moves to try to restrict their powers. Those triggered massive protests on the streets of Israel amongst Israelis who were kind of concerned this would really severely weaken or undermine the judicial system in Israel. We'll have to see what the Supreme Court does. Internationally, I mean, you're right. There have been quite vocal statements of condemnation from various countries in Europe, including the UK. But how much this Israeli government pays heed to international opinion is a big question. And we've seen certainly in recent months and recent years, it doesn't appear to have paid too much heed to international opinion.

7:20The US has, as of yet, not said anything about this. we know that the US is the one sort of ally that Netanyahu does pay attention to. Yeah, and the UN, as this legislation has been under consideration, has repeatedly called on Israel to withdraw this. It's warning that it would violate the right to life, it would discriminate against Palestinians in occupied territories. It would also remove judicial discretion and prevent courts from weighing individual circumstances or imposing proportionate sentences. Is there any role, do you think, that the International Criminal Court, the UN could play moving forward?

8:05I think the first instance will have to be to see what the Supreme Court sort of says and does about this. We know that the Association for Civil Rights in Israel has put forward an appeal to the Supreme Court. So there will be legal cases being made within Israel itself, which will be closely watched by international observers. But this question about due process is a really important one because, coming back to that original point, the process to get to the stage of getting to the death penalty, it's such a severe punishment. It's the kind of thing that any sort of legal opinion would want to be really thought through.

8:43and what we are seeing in this legislation is the possibility that it could be put through quite quickly and in quite a sort of rush through way so one of the stipulations is that if the death penalty is decided to be the punishment it should be applied within 90 days or a sort of maximum of 180 days which leaves people such limited time to appeal particularly when basic legal rights are so often deprived. I mean, obviously, you mentioned that the one country that has not been critical or condemned this is the US. The US, obviously, currently engaged in the Iran war alongside Israel. I mean, is the sort of timing of this passing through the Knesset, the Israeli parliament significant, do you think, in that respect, in the sense that the Israeli cabinet it feel that the world's attention is elsewhere and they can sort of get away with this?

9:42I think it's probably more to do, I think that in terms of timing, it's more to do with the fact this is very much something that's come in the wake of the Hamas attacks of October 2023, where there has been a sort of hardening, if you like, of opinion within Israel and within the Israeli government as to the treatment of Palestinians, and particularly Palestinians who are convicted of crimes. And I think in that context, that's what the far right in Israel have been pushing for, led by Ben Gavir. And I think, you know, he's, the far right are very much celebrating this today. They're not trying to sort of keep it quiet.

10:23And this is very much a move designed to appeal to Israelis within Israel. Ahead of an election that is coming up towards the end of this year, So Devika, thank you so much for your time and we'll see you back on the show soon. Not at all. Thank you for having me. That's it for today. My huge thanks again to Devika Batt, The Guardian's Deputy Head of International News. And for more on this story, head over to theguardian.com. Thanks for listening to this episode of The Latest, the new evening edition of Today in Focus. We'll be bringing you what you need to know about the story everyone's talking about in around 10 minutes each weekday evening.

11:03Today in Focus, we'll be back in your feeds as usual tomorrow morning. The latest will be back tomorrow night. This episode was presented by me, Lucy Hoff. It was produced by Bryony Moore. The senior producer was Ryan Ramgobin. The lead producer was Zoe Hitch.

11:24Chicago, 2011. A cop is murdered. Police and prosecutors swear they have the trigger man. He swears he didn't do it. How far will each side go to prove they're right? Like it's just one bombshell after another. You know, you're like, what? The story of a PlayStation, a brain-eating amoeba, and the relentless pursuit of justice. Off-duty, out now. Listen wherever you get your podcasts. This is The Guardian.