United Nations human rights experts on Wednesday called on Israel to withdraw a proposed bill that would introduce a mandatory death penalty for certain terrorist offenses, warning that the legislation would violate international law, undermine the right to life, and discriminate against Palestinians in the occupied Palestinian territory.

In a joint statement, the experts said that mandatory death sentences are fundamentally incompatible with international human rights standards, as they remove judicial discretion and prevent courts from considering individual circumstances or mitigating factors.

“Mandatory death sentences are contrary to the right to life,” the experts said. “By removing judicial and prosecutorial discretion, they prevent courts from imposing proportionate sentences that fit the crime.”

According to the experts, the bill establishes a two-track system for capital punishment. In the occupied West Bank, the death penalty would be imposed by Israeli military courts under military law for terrorist acts resulting in death, even when the killing was not intentional. In Israel and occupied East Jerusalem, the death penalty would apply under Israeli criminal law, but only for the intentional killing of Israeli citizens or residents.

Under both tracks, the legislation relies on vague and overly broad definitions of terrorism, which could encompass acts that do not meet international standards for terrorist crimes. The death penalty would be mandatory in such cases, leaving no room for judicial discretion.

The experts stressed that unintentional killings do not qualify as “the most serious crimes” under international law, a threshold required for the application of the death penalty. They also warned that Israeli military trials of civilians routinely fail to meet fair trial standards.

“Any resulting death sentence would further violate the right to life,” they said, adding that denial of a fair trial constitutes a war crime.

The bill would also allow death sentences to be imposed by a simple majority vote of military judges, prohibit any form of pardon or commutation, and severely restrict access to legal counsel. The experts said the legislation lacks a meaningful appeals process and removes effective external oversight, further eroding due process protections. They also warned that the law could be applied retroactively, in violation of international legal norms.

Additionally, the bill mandates the isolation of death row prisoners and requires execution by hanging within 90 days, under secrecy and immunity provisions. The experts said hanging constitutes torture or cruel, inhuman, or degrading punishment under international law.

The UN experts expressed particular concern over the bill’s discriminatory nature, noting that only Palestinians in the West Bank would be subject to military law, military courts, broader criminal liability, and reduced due process protections. Israeli settlers in the same territory would not be subject to the same legal regime.

They also highlighted that the death penalty in Israel and occupied East Jerusalem would apply only to killings of Israeli citizens or residents, further entrenching unequal treatment based on nationality and ethnicity.

The experts pointed to findings by the International Court of Justice, which concluded that certain Israeli policies in the occupied Palestinian territory amount to racial segregation and apartheid, and that Israel’s occupation violates international law.

“Israel does not have authority to enforce its laws against Palestinians in the occupied Palestinian territory,” the experts said.

Citing decades of documented abuses — including arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances, torture, sexual and gender-based violence, deaths in custody, and inhumane detention conditions — the experts warned that the risk of unlawful executions under the proposed system would be extremely high.

“We urge Israel to put an end to the death penalty, in line with the global trend toward abolition,” the experts said.

They confirmed that the Israeli government had previously been contacted regarding an earlier version of the bill. (ILKHA)