Jerusalem, 18 May, 2026 (TPS-IL) — Palestinians convicted of deadly terrorist attacks in military courts in Judea and Samaria can now face the death penalty after a regional military commander signed an amendment to security regulations Sunday night. But it remains unclear whether capital punishment will ultimately be applied in the way its legislative backers intended.
Central Command commander Maj. Gen. Avi Bluth signed the amendment at the direction of Defense Minister Israel Katz. The move follows the Knesset’s passage last month of legislation promoted by National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and his Otzma Yehudit party.
Because military law in Judea and Samaria operates under regional security regulations, the legislation required implementation through a military order signed by the Central Command commander.
The law applies to Palestinians convicted in military courts of deadly acts of terrorism under specific conditions.
“This is a clear and unambiguous policy change after the October 7 massacre,” Katz and Ben-Gvir said in a joint statement. “A terrorist who murders Jews will no longer be able to rely on deals, conditions, or hope of future release.”
Katz said the government intended to send a deterrent message to terrorists.
“Terrorists who murder Jews will not sit in prison under favorable conditions, will not wait for deals, and will not dream of release — they will pay the heaviest price,” Katz said.
Ben-Gvir described the move as the fulfillment of a political promise by his party.
“We promised — and we kept our word,” Ben-Gvir said. “A terrorist who murders Jews should know that his end will not be in a release deal, but in the death penalty.”
The legislation reflects a broader shift in Israeli counterterror policy following Hamas’ October 7, 2023 attack on southern Israel, in which terrorists killed approximately 1,200 people and abducted 251 others.
Under the law, military courts must impose the death penalty on convicted terrorists whose attacks caused death, unless judges determine that special circumstances justify a lesser sentence of life imprisonment.
The legislation applies only in military courts, which primarily prosecute Palestinians in Judea and Samaria. Israeli citizens accused of terrorism are generally tried in civilian courts.
Critics argue the law creates separate legal standards for Israeli and Palestinian defendants. Several rights organizations and political groups have petitioned Israel’s High Court of Justice to strike down the legislation, arguing that it violates principles of equality before the law and could conflict with international legal standards.
The court has ordered the state to submit its response later this month.
To seek the death penalty, prosecutors must prove that the attacker intended to undermine either the existence of the State of Israel or the authority of the military commander in the area — a legal threshold some analysts say may be difficult to meet in every case.
Earlier in May, the Knesset approved separate legislation creating a special tribunal to prosecute those accused of participating in the October 7 massacre.
The legislation establishes a dedicated military judicial framework to handle prosecutions connected to the October 7, 2023 assault, when thousands of terrorists infiltrated Israel from Gaza, killing roughly 1,200 people and abducting 251 others, while committing widespread acts of murder, rape, torture and kidnapping.
The tribunal will handle cases involving approximately 300 terrorists captured inside Israeli territory during the attack, along with suspects accused of involvement in kidnapping and related crimes. In the gravest cases, the tribunal would have the authority to impose the death penalty.
If implemented, the death penalty provision would mark an extraordinarily rare step in Israeli legal history.
The only person ever executed by Israel was Adolf Eichmann, one of the chief architects of the Holocaust. He was hanged in 1962 after being convicted of genocide and crimes against humanity.
Israeli courts also sentenced John Demjanjuk to death in 1988 for crimes committed at Nazi concentration camps, but the Supreme Court overturned the conviction in 1993. He was later convicted in Germany and died while appealing the verdict.