Palestinians in West Bank Stage Strike and Protests Over Israeli Law Allowing Death Penalty for Deadly Attacks

By [Neutral Editor Rewrite]

Palestinian shops and public institutions, including universities, across the West Bank and East Jerusalem closed on Wednesday as part of a general strike called by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah party. Demonstrators marched against a new Israeli law that sets the death penalty as the default sentence for Palestinians in the West Bank convicted in military courts of carrying out deadly attacks classified as terrorism.

Hundreds gathered in Ramallah, chanting slogans against the law and urging international intervention to block its implementation. The legislation, passed by Israel's Knesset on Monday, was backed by National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who described it as necessary to deter attacks amid a surge in violence. Ben-Gvir stated on social media that the measure targets "terrorists who murder Jews" and would "save lives."

In Nablus, northern West Bank, protesters carried signs such as "Stop the law to execute prisoners, before it’s too late," featuring an image of a figure in a keffiyeh scarf beside a noose. Journalists from the AFP news agency reported that most shops in Hebron, Ramallah, and Nablus had shutters down by midday.

Reports from Al Jazeera and the Palestinian news agency WAFA stated that Israeli soldiers in Anata, northeast of Jerusalem’s Old City, ordered Palestinian shop owners participating in the strike to reopen their businesses. These accounts have not been independently verified by other international outlets.

United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk criticized the law, stating that its application to residents of the occupied Palestinian territory "would constitute a war crime."

At the Ramallah protest, Riman, a 53-year-old psychologist who declined to give her full name, told AFP: "There isn’t a single person standing here who doesn’t have a brother, a husband, a son, or even a neighbour in prison. There is no Palestinian family without a prisoner." She added, "Today we feel a lot of anger, because there is also a real weakness in solidarity with them. The occupation is betting on the weakness of the street."

According to Palestinian and Israeli human rights organizations such as Addameer and B'Tselem, more than 9,500 Palestinians are held in Israeli prisons, including around 350 children and 73 women. These groups allege that detainees face torture, inadequate medical care, and poor conditions, contributing to deaths in custody. Israeli authorities maintain that the prisoners are security detainees held under military orders, deny systematic abuse, and state that facilities meet international standards, with isolated incidents investigated.

The law applies specifically to Palestinians in the West Bank, who are tried in Israeli military courts. In those courts, convictions for deadly "terrorism" attacks now carry the death penalty by default. In Israeli civilian courts, similar convictions allow for death or life imprisonment. The measure does not apply retroactively.

Palestinians shared images on social media of burning tires at the Qalandia checkpoint, a major West Bank entry point to Jerusalem. WAFA reported that Israeli forces fired rubber-coated bullets, stun grenades, and tear gas at protesters there, with no injuries noted.

Israel has controlled the West Bank since capturing it in the 1967 war. Violence in the area has escalated since the October 7, 2023, Hamas attacks on Israel, which killed about 1,200 people and led to over 250 hostages taken. Israel's subsequent military campaign in Gaza has resulted in more than 43,000 Palestinian deaths, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, a figure that includes both civilians and combatants and is disputed by Israel. In the West Bank, attacks have increased on both sides: Palestinian assailants have killed at least 50 Israelis since October 2023, including civilians in stabbings and shootings, while Israeli forces and settlers have killed over 500 Palestinians, per United Nations data. The new law responds to this context, with Israeli officials citing over 30 deadly West Bank attacks on Israelis in recent months as justification.

*(Word count: 612)*