Several protests erupted across the Middle East this week, denouncing what has been lambasted as Israel's "racist" death penalty law targeting Palestinians.
Thousands of Syrians took to the streets across several provinces to express their rejection of the law, according to reports on Thursday. Mass demonstrations were recorded in Damascus, Daraa, Quneitra, Latakia, Idlib, Homs, and Aleppo .
Hundreds of students in Aleppo took part in a sit-in protest inside the Aleppo University, before marching to the Saadallah al-Jabiri Square in the city centre, where locals joined in.
Others also participated in the protests in the al-Nairab Palestinian refugee camp, where many waved the Palestinian and Syrian flags and chanted slogans rejecting the law.
Eight Muslim-majority countries, including Egypt, Indonesia, Qatar , and the UAE, issued a joint statement strongly condemning the death penalty bill.
"The ministers warned against the increasingly discriminatory, escalating Israeli practices that entrench a system of apartheid and a rejectionist discourse that denies the inalienable rights and the very existence of the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory," the statement reads.
"The Ministers also expressed deep concern over the conditions of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli detention, warning of mounting risks amid credible reports of ongoing abuses, including torture, inhumane and degrading treatment, starvation, and the denial of basic rights," the statement continued. Other signatories include Saudi Arabia and Pakistan .
Meanwhile, Oman’s foreign affairs ministry also issued a separate statement, denouncing any measures that legitimise the harming of Palestinian detainees or encroaching on their human rights.
The statement called on the international community to ensure that international law is respected and that Palestinian detainees are given protection.
On Wednesday, the occupied West Bank took part in a general strike, which saw almost all businesses and organisations shut down in protest of the law. In some cities, people marched into the streets, condemning the legislation.
The Israeli parliament passed the highly controversial bill this week, which will allow for Palestinians accused of carrying out attacks against Israelis to be hanged. The law would not apply to Israelis accused of the same crimes.
Its passage marked a major victory for Israel's far right, with National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir having pushed for its enactment as one of the main conditions of his Otzma Yehudit (Jewish Power) party's coalition agreement with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The law has also been criticised by the United Nations and the European Union; however, Israel's ally, the United States, came out in support of its "sovereign right to determine its own laws".