RAMALLAH, (Palestine Foundation Information Center), The Hamas Movement has warned of the “dangerous consequences” of what it described as a racist law passed by the Israeli Knesset authorizing the death penalty for Palestinian prisoners, particularly those accused by Israeli authorities of involvement in the Al-Aqsa Flood operation.
In a statement issued Tuesday, Hamas said policies of “terror and fascist legislation” would fail to break the will of the Palestinian people or deter them from continuing their legitimate struggle for national rights.
The Movement described the legislation as a “dangerous escalation” and “another crime” added to the occupation’s long record of war crimes and systematic violations against Palestinians.
Hamas stressed that the law is “null and illegitimate,” arguing that it constitutes a blatant violation of international law, including the Geneva Conventions and international humanitarian law.
Hamas said the legislation grants extraordinary powers to military courts, allows authorities to bypass standard legal and evidentiary procedures, and establishes mechanisms for carrying out executions, revealing the “revenge-driven and racist nature” of the Israeli legal system.
According to Hamas, the law is also aimed at undermining any future prisoner exchange agreements by explicitly excluding prisoners linked to the October 7, 2023 attack from potential release deals.
The Movement called on the United Nations, the International Criminal Court, the United Nations Human Rights Council, and international human rights organizations to intervene urgently to halt what it called a “criminal law” and hold Israeli leaders accountable for ongoing violations against Palestinian prisoners.
On Monday evening, the Israeli Knesset approved the legislation in its second and third readings by a vote of 93 members.
The bill, introduced by Constitution, Law and Justice Committee chairman Simcha Rothman and Knesset member Yulia Malinovsky, authorizes the prosecution of Palestinians accused of committing what Israeli authorities describe as the “most serious crimes,” including the possibility of passing death sentences.
Israeli media reported that prisoners sentenced under the law would never be eligible for release, including in future prisoner exchange agreements.
The development follows another law approved by the Knesset in March that permits the execution of Palestinian prisoners by hanging inside Israeli prisons, a move rights groups described as unprecedented.
Israeli authorities continue to detain hundreds of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip, including 1,283 detainees classified under the designation of “unlawful combatants.”
According to figures released by Palestinian prisoner rights groups, including the Commission of Detainees’ Affairs, the Palestinian Prisoners’ Society, and Addameer, the number of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli prisons had risen to more than 9,400 by early May 2026.
