Ramallah: The Palestinian Prisoner's Society (PPS) declared that the recent amendments to military orders in the West Bank, which extend the application of the death penalty against Palestinian prisoners in Israeli military courts, represent a dangerous escalation in what they describe as a genocidal colonial project perpetrated by the Israeli occupation regime against the Palestinian people.
According to Palestine news and Information Agency, the PPS highlighted that this expansion of the death penalty comes approximately two months after the 'Execution of Prisoners Law' was enacted, and shortly after the establishment of special courts for Gaza detainees. These detainees are accused by occupation authorities of participating in the events of October 7, 2023. The PPS asserts that these developments underscore the existential threats Palestinians face amidst systematic international inaction and the occupation's disregard for global calls to halt its racist and genocidal legislation, facilitated by international complicity providing political and legal cover for continued crimes.
The PPS further noted that the Israeli occupation has engaged in extrajudicial killings of Palestinians through daily field executions and slow executions within prisons and detention camps. It is now swiftly moving to legalize these actions, offering them legislative and judicial cover, thereby entrenching a colonial legal system that legitimizes killing and turns military courts into instruments for perpetuating genocide against Palestinians.
Continuing, the PPS stated that these laws emerge amidst escalating crimes by armed settlers in the West Bank, who have become central figures in executing Palestinians with direct protection from the Israeli occupation army. This occurs within a policy framework aimed at entrenching organized terrorism against Palestinians, pushing them toward further targeting, erasure, and displacement.
PPS emphasized that the current situation faced by the Palestinian people, characterized by extermination, erasure, starvation, arrest, torture, and mass killing, has reached a historical peak. It is no longer solely a Palestinian issue but a moral and humanitarian test for the world, which witnesses the annihilation of a people without imposing accountability on the Israeli occupation system.
The organization pointed out that Israeli military laws in the West Bank have long included provisions for the death penalty. Historically, the occupation has relied on extrajudicial killings rather than judicial activation of these laws. The current threat lies in transforming the death penalty into an official policy, administered through a legislative and judicial system, advancing apartheid and systematic extermination. Despite repeated appeals to international bodies, PPS asserts that international community failures necessitate immediate actions to hold the Israeli occupation accountable.
The PPS reiterated its call for free nations, parliaments, and international organizations to take a clear stance against the Israeli Knesset, terminate its membership in international parliamentary bodies, and boycott it for legitimizing genocide and enacting racist laws targeting Palestinian rights, particularly the right to life, liberty, and self-determination. It urged for pressure to dismantle Israeli military courts.
Finally, the PPS emphasized its commitment to appealing to global forces opposed to colonialism and racism, advocating for Palestinian prisoners facing a critical phase in the prisoners' movement's history. It asserted that Israel's continued impunity and the world's treatment of it as a colonial power above the law threaten the international humanitarian and legal system, potentially leading to the collapse of established values and standards.
