“Britain must implement meaningful and wide-ranging sanctions on Israel.”
By the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC)
On 30 March, the Israeli Knesset passed a law to introduce the death penalty exclusively for Palestinians. The death penalty is an immoral and abhorrent form of punishment, but it has an added grotesque layer in the context of Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestine. Already, Palestinians have no access to fair trials or justice, and this law will be used as a tool for maintaining Israel’s brutal system of apartheid over them.
You can oppose Israel’s new death penalty law by writing to the Foreign Secretary here. The text of the letter is in full below.
Dear Foreign Secretary,
I’m writing to express my grave concern over a law, passed by the Israeli Knesset on 30 March, which will introduce a system of death penalty by hanging exclusively for Palestinians, whether they are Palestinians with Israeli citizenship or Palestinians living under Israel’s illegal occupation in the West Bank. This new law is brutal, blatantly racist, a clear example of apartheid, and another flagrant violation of international law.
I’m aware that the British government has issued a joint statement with other governments condemning this law when it was in proposal form, but statements are not enough. It is long past time for the British government to impose comprehensive sanctions on Israel, including but not limited to a full arms embargo.
The death penalty is an immoral and abhorrent form of punishment, but it has an added layer in the context of Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory, which has been confirmed as illegal in a landmark ruling by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in July 2024. Israel’s occupation is upheld by a system of military courts, which only apply to Palestinians in the West Bank, whereas Israelis living in illegal settlements are subject to Israel’s civil law. The military courts have an extraordinarily high conviction rate because Palestinians have no access to fair trials within them, an issue that has been raised for decades by international human rights experts. Adding the death penalty to a context where fundamental rights to a fair trial are not in place is a legal and moral catastrophe. Furthermore, the new law allows for the death penalty to be applied to Palestinian citizens of Israel as well, exposing the fundamentally racist logic and operations of Israel’s apartheid system.
It has now been over 18 months since the ICJ declared Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory to be illegal, and it called on all states to take immediate measures to end it. It is inexcusable that the British government has still not responded to this landmark ruling from the ICJ. During that time, the situation for Palestinians has drastically worsened, and this latest law introducing the death penalty is yet another example of Israel further entrenching its apartheid regime while facing no real consequences from the British government.
Now is the time for the government to finally fulfil its legal obligations to stop aiding or assisting Israel’s unlawful activities through its trade, diplomatic relations, and military cooperation. To do this, Britain must implement meaningful and wide-ranging sanctions on Israel.
- You can follow the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) on Facebook, Twitter/X, Instagram, Bluesky and TikTok.
- This statement is taken from the PSC website.
- You can write to the Foreign Secretary here.
- If you support Labour Outlook’s work amplifying the voices of left movements and struggles here and internationally, please consider becoming a supporter on Patreon.
