DaysofPal – In a major escalation of collective punishment measures across the occupied West Bank, a prominent coalition of Israeli and Palestinian human rights legal centers has issued a stark warning regarding a newly enacted military directive. The groups reveal that the Israeli military’s recent executive order establishing capital punishment for Palestinians establishes a punitive framework far more radical than the controversial domestic legislation passed by the Knesset itself, bypassing even basic baseline guarantees for a fair trial.
Five rights organizations, Adalah, Physicians for Human Rights Israel, HaMoked, the Public Committee Against Torture in Israel, and Gisha, called for the immediate cancellation of the military order signed by the commander of Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank on 17 May 2026. The order was issued under the pretext of enforcing the “death penalty law” passed by the Knesset on 30 March.
In an urgent letter addressed to Israeli authorities, the organizations said the military order dangerously expands upon the Israeli law itself by broadening the definition of crimes that could lead to execution and shifting the burden of proving key elements of alleged offenses onto the accused.
According to the groups, the order opens the door to a punitive system that is “more extreme and severe” than the legislation adopted by the Knesset.
The five organizations, alongside several Arab members of the Knesset, had already filed a petition before the Israeli Supreme Court immediately after the law’s approval, arguing that the legislation is unconstitutional, discriminatory, and incompatible with international law.
The court subsequently ordered the Israeli government to submit its preliminary response to the petition and to a request seeking an injunction freezing implementation of the law by 24 May.
Concerns Over Fair Trial Violations and Expanded Military Powers
According to the organizations’ statement, the military order introduces “vague and politicized” definitions for crimes punishable by death. Among them are killings allegedly committed with the intent of “denying the right of the State of Israel to exist or the authority of the military commander in the region.”
The groups argued that these definitions go beyond even the broad classifications contained in Israeli anti-terror legislation.
The statement further warned that the order grants extraordinary privileges to military prosecutors by presuming the existence of aggravating circumstances necessary to elevate murder charges to capital offenses. These presumptions could be triggered merely by the use of a weapon or allegations that the accused belongs to what Israel classifies as an “illegal organization,” without requiring prosecutors to prove those claims conclusively.
The organizations said such assumptions constitute a dangerous departure from fundamental fair trial principles, particularly in cases that may result in death sentences.
Describing the legislation as among the “most extreme and harshest execution laws in the world,” the rights groups said the measures exclusively target Palestinians while denying convicted individuals any possibility of pardon or sentence reduction.
They also pointed out that the law allows death sentences to be issued without unanimous agreement among judges and requires executions to be carried out within 90 days of the final ruling.
The organizations stressed that these measures are being implemented within Israel’s military court system, which they accused of systematic violations of fair trial standards and repeated reliance on torture and ill-treatment.
The statement further argued that the military order constitutes a blatant violation of international law and the legal framework governing occupation, emphasizing that the powers of a military commander in occupied territory derive from international humanitarian law and do not permit the direct or indirect imposition of Israeli domestic legislation on occupied land.
The rights groups demanded that the military order be revoked within seven days, warning that they would pursue further legal action if Israeli authorities fail to respond.
The letter was submitted on behalf of the organizations by attorney Muna Haddad and Dr. Suhad Bishara, director of Adalah’s legal department.
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