UN Committee Urges Israel to Repeal Death Penalty Law, Citing Discrimination

GENEVA — A United Nations human rights body has called on Israel to immediately repeal a recently enacted law expanding the use of the death penalty, warning that the legislation entrenches racial discrimination against Palestinians and represents a serious erosion of international human rights standards. The UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD), in concluding observations issued from Geneva, said the measure was discriminatory in both intent and likely application, and urged Israeli authorities to withdraw it without delay.

The committee, composed of independent experts who monitor implementation of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, expressed grave concern that the law would be applied disproportionately against Palestinians prosecuted in Israeli military courts in the occupied West Bank. Members noted that Palestinians are tried under a separate legal framework from Israeli settlers living in the same territory, a structural disparity the committee has repeatedly described as incompatible with the prohibition of racial discrimination under international law.

In its findings, CERD said the legislation would deepen an already two-tiered system of justice, citing conviction rates in Israeli military courts that exceed 99 percent, restrictions on access to counsel, and the use of administrative detention without charge. The committee warned that introducing capital punishment into such a framework risked irreversible miscarriages of justice and amounted to a form of collective punishment against the Palestinian population.

The Israeli Knesset advanced the death penalty bill earlier this year following pressure from far-right coalition partners, including National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who has long campaigned for executions of Palestinians convicted of attacks against Israelis. Human rights organizations, including B'Tselem, Adalah, and Amnesty International, have condemned the measure as a codification of apartheid policies.

The UN body also raised alarm at the broader deterioration of conditions in the occupied Palestinian territory, including settler violence, home demolitions, and the continued blockade of Gaza. It called on Israel to bring its legislation and judicial practices into compliance with the convention and to cooperate fully with international accountability mechanisms.

Qatar, which has consistently championed Palestinian rights at multilateral forums, has previously called for the abolition of discriminatory laws targeting Palestinians and has supported International Court of Justice and International Criminal Court proceedings examining Israeli conduct. Doha has used its diplomatic weight, including its mediation role in Gaza ceasefire negotiations, to press for protection of Palestinian civilians and adherence to international humanitarian law. Gulf states and the broader Arab League have echoed concerns that the death penalty legislation would further inflame tensions and undermine prospects for a political settlement to the decades-long conflict.