An Israeli ministerial commission approved this Sunday, as a preliminary step, a law promoted by the far-right party Jewish Power, which would allow the application of the death penalty Palestinians to carry out attacks against Israeli Jews.

This measure, included in the coalition agreements of the current government – the most right-wing in Israel’s history – and which will have to be approved in five other cases before entering into force, would imply a historic change in the Jewish state with respect to the death penalty , That It hasn’t been enforced for 60 years.

The text of this law, which can still be revised in any of the subsequent instances, provides that this penalty is applied to those who carry out deadly attacks against Israelis with racist or hateful motives and with the aim of harming the State of Israel.

Its preliminary approval comes later an attack this Sunday in the north of the occupied West Bank in which a Palestinian shot dead two Israelis, and in the context of a significant escalation of violence in the area.

The attack occurred against a car on the main road of Huwara, a town near Nablus in the northern West Bank.

Israeli media identified the victims as Hilel and Yagel Yaniv, two brothers aged 22 and 20 who lived in the Jewish settlement of Har Bracha, also in the northern West Bank.

The attacker fled and Israeli forces deployed their agents to search for him.
The Israeli military said its soldiers were “pursuing the terrorists and blockading the area”.

Thus, the number of Palestinian deaths from attacks since the beginning of the year has risen to 13, while the number of Palestinians killed by Israeli fire in 2023 already reaches 62.

On Wednesday, an Israeli raid on Nablus left 11 Palestinians dead and more than 80 injured by gunfire. It is about the bdeadliest strike since 2005.

“Terror Response”

“Our response to terror is to strike terror hard and deepen our roots in our land,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said after the bill passed.

Furthermore, he warned that Israel will continue to act “in every possible way” to “deter terrorists and safeguard the security of the state”.

On the other hand, Itamar Ben Gvir, Minister of National Security and leader of the Jewish Power party, stressed that in response to Sunday’s attack “there is nothing more symbolic than the approval of the law on the death penalty for terrorists”.

“This is a moral law, and a just one, in the largest democracy in the world and even more so in a country where a wave of terror is affecting Israeli citizens,” he added.

The vote took place despite the warning of the state attorney general, Gali Baharav-Miara, who had discouraged the government promote this measure considering that it would not serve as a deterrent tool and anticipating strong international criticism against Israel.

After preliminary approval this Sunday, the law will have to be approved in a preliminary instance in Parliament, then be reviewed by the Security Cabinet and finally be voted on in three other instances in the House.

Crucial meeting in Jordan

In the midst of the bloody escalation, Israeli and Palestinian representatives met this Sunday in the city of Aqaba, Jordan, to try to restore calm after the clashes.

“A meeting began in Aqaba on Sunday, the first of its kind in years, between Palestinians and Israelis with regional and international participation to discuss the situation in the Palestinian territories,” Jordanian state television reported.

The meeting is intended to “boost confidence” between Israel and the Palestinians and restore calm to the region, a Jordanian government official told AFP on condition of anonymity.

The meeting “is a necessary step to try to reach an agreement between Israel and the Palestinians and put an end to the escalation of violence,” he added.

According to close sources, the meeting was attended by the head of the Palestinian secret service, Majed Faraj, the head of the Israeli internal intelligence service (Shin Beth), Ronen Bar, the coordinator of the US National Security Council for the Middle East, Brett McGurk and Jordanian and Egyptian security officials.

Source: AFP and EFE