RAMALLAH, (PIC)
In one of the most dangerous legislative shifts within the Israeli political system in recent years, the Israeli Knesset has approved, in its second and third readings, a law that would allow the prosecution of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners accused of participating in the Al-Aqsa Flood operation of 7 October 2023 through a special judicial track that could ultimately lead to death sentences.
The legislation directly targets members of the Palestinian resistance’s “elite forces” who participated in the cross-border operation into settlements surrounding the Gaza Strip, marking a transition by the Israeli establishment from policies of “field executions” and “slow killing” inside prisons toward granting formal legal cover for the public execution of Palestinian prisoners.
Under the new law, a special military court will be established in occupied Jerusalem, with cases divided geographically according to the sites targeted during the 7 October operation, including Be’eri, Nir Oz and the Nova music festival area. The legislation permits charges categorized under Israeli law as the “most serious crimes,” carrying penalties that may include execution.
The move comes amid an unprecedented escalation in far-right Israeli rhetoric, led by Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and backed directly by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in the atmosphere of vengeance that followed the 7 October attack, which triggered one of the deepest military, political and security shocks in Israel’s history.
A long-standing legislative project
The proposed “prisoners’ execution law” did not emerge suddenly. Rather, it represents the continuation of a years-long legislative effort pursued by successive Israeli governments, particularly following the rise of ultra-nationalist and religious factions within Israel’s political establishment.
The proposal was first introduced in expanded form in 2022, before passing a preliminary reading in 2023. It returned forcefully to the political agenda in 2025 after receiving approval from the National Security Committee, eventually securing final passage by a large majority in the Knesset.
The law allows courts to issue death sentences against anyone convicted of “deliberately causing the death of a person with the intent of denying the existence of the State of Israel”, wording that has sparked controversy even within Israeli legal circles because of its broad and ambiguous nature.
Observers argue that the wording was deliberately crafted to avoid implicating Jewish settlers or Israelis who committed killings motivated by nationalism or racism, ensuring that the law would be applied almost exclusively against Palestinians without stating so explicitly.
In March, the Israeli Knesset also approved another law authorizing the hanging of Palestinian prisoners inside Israeli prisons, a move rights groups described as an unprecedented escalation in Israel’s treatment of Palestinian detainees.
Israeli authorities continue to detain hundreds of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip, including 1,283 detainees classified under the designation of “unlawful combatants.”
According to figures released by the Palestinian Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs, the Palestinian Prisoners’ Society and Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association, the number of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli prisons had surpassed 9,400 by early May 2026.
Fears of dangerous escalation inside prisons
The passage of the law has intensified Palestinian and international human rights concerns that Israeli prisons may become open arenas for systematic physical liquidation, especially amid what rights organizations describe as policies of “slow execution” through torture, medical neglect, starvation and abuse.
Palestinian estimates suggest that hundreds of detainees could be targeted under the law, particularly prisoners included in the so-called “elite forces file” from Gaza, whom Israel considers directly responsible for the events of 7 October.
Observers also believe the law’s undeclared objective is to block any future possibility of releasing prisoners serving life or lengthy sentences in prisoner exchange deals by legally eliminating them before any political settlement can emerge.
A tool of revenge
Writer and political analyst Hilal Nassar said the new Israeli law “reflects the state of political and military revenge dominating Israel after its failure to contain the consequences of 7 October,” arguing that its real aim is “to get rid of the elite prisoners who have become a nightmare within the Israeli consciousness.”
Nassar told the PIC correspondent that “Israel has effectively practiced execution policies against Palestinians for decades, through assassinations, field killings and torture inside prisons, but what is new today is the attempt to transform this policy into a formal legal text that grants judicial cover for liquidation operations.”
He added that the legal formulation of the law “suffers from clear fragility,” particularly the phrase “denying the existence of the State of Israel,” describing it as “a vague political slogan rather than a precise criminal standard.”
Nassar also noted that “passing the law does not necessarily mean it will be fully implemented, because carrying it out could expose Israel to broad international pressure, legal challenges and political fallout that may ultimately become more burdensome than beneficial.”
He concluded that “the current scene reflects Israel’s transition from merely managing repression inside prisons to openly attempting to legalize liquidation, amid the growing influence of extremist right-wing currents pushing toward greater violence and escalation.”