After dozens died in Israeli jails, death penalty law rattles Palestinians

"Dozens of Palestinian prisoners have died in Israeli prisons over the past two and a half years, some during torture while others as a result of medical neglect by prison authorities, rights groups say. Now, Israel is making plans for the execution of possibly hundreds of Palestinian prisoners held on charges of fatal attacks against Israelis, according to an Israeli media report, under what legal experts have called racist legislation that has rattled the families of thousands of Palestinians in Israeli jails."

"Israel's Channel 13 reported last week that the Israeli Prison Service (IPS) has embarked on logistical preparations to implement a draft law, outlining plans for a dedicated facility to carry out any executions and to prepare and train staff to implement the punishment. The draft law calling for the execution of Palestinian prisoners convicted of killing Israelis passed the first reading in the Israeli parliament in November, amid controversy about what a Palestinian legal expert has described as apartheid legislation. An amended version of the bill is under discussion in a parliamentary committee in advance of two more readings before it is adopted into law, but no date has been set for a new vote."

"Israel's Channel 13 reported that under the plan, executions would be implemented within 90 days of the court ruling and that they would be carried out by hanging. It quoted sources as saying that death sentences would be carried out against elite members of Hamas, accused of involvement in the October 7, 2023 attack. Prisoners convicted of lethal attacks against Israelis in the occupied West Bank would later be subject to execution, it said."

Dozens of Palestinian prisoners have died in Israeli prisons over the past two and a half years, with some deaths attributed to torture and others to medical neglect by prison authorities. The Israeli Prison Service has begun logistical preparations to implement a draft law that would permit executions of Palestinian prisoners convicted of killing Israelis, including plans for a dedicated facility and trained staff. The bill passed a first parliamentary reading in November and is undergoing committee revisions before further votes. The measure calls for executions by hanging within 90 days of a court ruling and initially targets elite Hamas members linked to the October 7, 2023 attack, with prisoners convicted of lethal attacks in the occupied West Bank to follow.

Read at www.aljazeera.com