Netanyahu supports death penalty law for terrorists after hostages are released

A controversial bill proposing the death penalty for Palestinian terrorists – backed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu – has sparked intense public and political debate.

While Netanyahu initially refrained from publicly supporting the legislation, apparently out of fear that it could affect hostages held in Gaza, his spokesperson has since confirmed his support.

“Regarding the death penalty bill, it is known that the prime minister supports it, of course, as a punishment after a fair trial in our justice system. Anyone who harms the State of Israel and its citizens will suffer the consequences,” said Shosh Bedrosian, spokesperson for foreign media at the Prime Minister’s Office.

ISRAEL’S COVERED CAMPAIGN TARGETS HAMAS TERRORISTS BEHIND OCTOBER 7 MASSACRE

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends a news conference with Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and Minister Benny Gantz at the Kirya military base in Tel Aviv, Israel, Saturday, October 28, 2023. (Abir Sultan/Pool photo via AP)

” Coalition lawmaker and bill sponsor Limor Son Har-Melech told Fox News Digital. “Although the law is not yet fully drafted, we want to combat the phenomenon of terrorist attacks against Israeli citizens and, therefore, based on the basic principles, we have determined that the law will apply to those who commit terrorist attacks against citizens of the State of Israel.” Har-Melech’s party, Otzma Yehudit, pushed the bill.

A document describing the basic principles of the law states that the sentence “shall be imposed by simple majority, without discretionary power, without the possibility of changing the type of sentence, without the possibility of mitigating the sentence by offering an agreement or by pardon (subject to the law in force).”

To avoid any delay, the document adds that the execution “will take place within 90 days” and that it will be administered by the prison administration “by means of an injection of poison”.

Terrorists in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza, celebrate the ceasefire on January 19, 2025. (TPS-IL)

The document highlights the deterrent effect sought by the bill, noting that Israel has been repeatedly targeted by terrorist groups seeking to kidnap Israelis for prisoner exchanges. A 2011 deal, for example, saw the release of 1,027 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for IDF soldier Gilad Shalit, kidnapped in 2005. Assassinated Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar – widely considered the architect of the October 7 massacre – was among those freed in that exchange.

Israeli Minister of National Security and head of the Otzma Yehudit party, Itamar Ben-Gvir, told Fox News Digital: “The law on the death penalty for terrorists is necessary and extremely important. The one who raped our daughters, murdered our elders or massacred our children has no right to exist, no right to breathe air for a single second. His sentence is one: put him to the gallows.

He added: “This law is moral and ethical, and it sends a very clear message to our enemies: don’t bother us. I will continue to advance this law with all my strength. I won’t let go until we adopt her, God willing.

THE CO-FOUNDER OF HAMAS AFTER BEING QUESTIONED IN OCTOBER 2019. 7AFTER: “GOING TO HELL”

Hamas terrorists killed civilians, including women, children and the elderly, when they attacked Israel on October 7, 2023. (Israel Defense Forces via AP)

Dr. Amir Fuchs, a senior researcher at the Israel Democracy Institute, told Fox News Digital that research indicates that capital punishment does not significantly deter ordinary murderers, and that its effect on terrorists – who are already risking their lives – may be even weaker.

He also pointed out that the law does not confer any discretionary powers on the court or the prosecution, making the death penalty mandatory in some cases.

“It’s extreme and, I believe, unconstitutional. It also wouldn’t apply to Jewish terrorists, which is discriminatory,” Fuchs said.

“This assumption that we will execute tens of thousands of people is completely false. The law only applies to murderers. The idea that adopting the death penalty means that all terrorists will be executed is simply false,” he added.

Yitzhak Wasserlauf, Israel’s minister for the Negev, Galilee and National Resilience, told Fox News Digital that the death penalty law for terrorists is important because it aims to stop kidnappings of Israelis.

“The only way there will be no more kidnappings of Israelis is if there are no more terrorists to be freed in exchange,” Wasserlauf said.

A bloody handprint stains a wall of a house in Nir Oz after Hamas terrorists attacked that kibbutz days earlier, near the Gaza border. (Alexi J. Rosenfeld/Getty Images)

BODY OF ISRAELI HOSTAGE WHO FIGHTED HEROICALLY TO DEFEND COMMUNITY DURING OCTOBER 7 MASSACRE RETURNED (IDF)

The death penalty has only been used twice in Israeli history, most notably in the 1962 execution of SS officer Adolf Eichmann, one of the principal architects of the Holocaust.

United Torah Judaism lawmaker Yaakov Asher, who opposes the bill, told Fox News Digital that his objection is rooted in the principle of pikuach nefesh, a fundamental tenet of Jewish law that prioritizes the preservation of human life above almost all other religious commandments.

Knesset member Limor Son Har-Melech 9 (left) of the right-wing Otzma Yehudit party supported the capital punishment bill for terrorists. (Matan Golan/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

“Rabbi Dov Lando asked us to oppose it, warning that even raising the issue – let alone legislating – could trigger a wave of terrorism against Jews,” Asher said. “There is also the halakhic concern of ‘provoking the nations of the world,’ which requires determining whether a measure would protect the Jews or, God forbid, endanger even one of them.”

The Hadash-Ta’al faction in the Knesset, led by MK Dr Ahmed Tibi, issued an official statement denouncing the bill as discriminatory and inflammatory.

“It is clear to us that the death penalty will not have a deterrent effect; on the contrary, it will have the opposite effect and could increase attacks – something we oppose as a group. We want to advance a political process that will end the conflict,” the statement said.

“All human rights values ​​and norms are fundamentally opposed to the death penalty from a human point of view,” the text continues. “We know from our parliamentary and political work that the proposed bill is nothing less than an act of vengeance that deepens hatred and fuels an atmosphere of incitement and extremism between the two peoples,” he adds.

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The bill still requires two additional readings in the Knesset plenary session to be adopted and remains subject to possible amendments beforehand.