Israel Advances Death Penalty for Terrorists
The only individual ever executed by Israel was Adolf Eichmann, the Nazi architect of the Holocaust.
A Palestinian terrorist (center) smiles in court, knowing
that Israel's lenient policies will afford him a relatively comfy stay
in prison and likely an early release.
The Israeli government’s Ministerial Committee for Legislation voted on Sunday to advance a bill allowing capital punishment for certain terror offenses.
The committee is made up of 11 Cabinet ministers.
The Security Cabinet will discuss the legislation’s wording and then send it to the Knesset for a vote, which could possibly be as early as Wednesday.
“We will continue to act by all means, with security, operational activity and legislation, to deter the terrorists and maintain Israel’s security. Our answer to terrorism is to hit terrorism hard and deepen our roots in our country,” said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a joint statement with National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, whose Otzma Yehudit (Jewish Power) party initiated the legislation.
Ben-Gvir said, “On this difficult day, when two Israeli citizens were killed in a Palestinian terror attack, there is nothing more symbolic than passing a death penalty for terrorists law.” He was referring to a shooting attack in the Palestinian village of Huwara, near Shechem (Nablus).
Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara has voiced opposition to the death penalty, arguing that it does not lead to deterrence.
The only individual ever executed by Israel was Adolf Eichmann, the Nazi architect of the Holocaust. He was hung in 1962 and his ashes scattered at sea after he was found guilty of genocide and crimes against humanity.
An Israeli court sentenced John Demjanjuk to death in 1988 for crimes against humanity while working at different concentration camps. However, Israel’s Supreme Court overturned the sentence in 1993. Israel eventually extradited Demjanuk, who died in Germany while appealing a conviction there.
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