Portugal’s ministry of Foreign Affairs has issued a curt statement over social media today in response to the controversial law passed by Israel which makes death by hanging the default sentence for Palestinians convicted of deadly attacks.
Dubbing the move a civilizational setback, the full statement runs as follows: “Portugal, a pioneering country in the abolition of the death penalty, condemns and regrets the decision of the Israeli parliament to approve a law that broadens the scope of the application of the death penalty. Such a decision represents a civilizational setback that gravely undermines human dignity.”
The Council of Europe also described the approval of the law, designed specifically to target Palestinians, as a “serious setback”.
Alain Berset, leader of the human rights monitoring body, said in a press release that the law marked a further departure for Israel from the values it has historically associated itself with, adding that it was a “legal anachronism” incompatible with contemporary human rights standards, and that any discriminatory application of the law is “unacceptable” in a state governed by the rule of law.
Berset had previously urged Israel and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not to adopt the legislation, which was heavily pushed by the far-right.
The Council of Europe will be examining the implications of this vote regarding Israel’s participation in various European institutions, conventions, and bodies, Berset added.
The law, passed with 62 votes in favour and 48 against, mandates death by hanging for individuals found guilty of “terrorist murder”, which, in practice, applies only to Palestinians convicted of attacks or assaults against Israel, requiring Israeli military courts to impose this sentence on Palestinians residing in the occupied West Bank, whilst courts judging Israeli citizens have the option of imposing life imprisonment instead.
The death penalty has existed in Israel, but has been carried out only twice: in 1948, after the creation of the state, against an army captain accused of high treason, and in 1962, when the Nazi war criminal Adolf Eichmann was hanged.
Another real issue with this law is that Israel’s perception of terrorists is also up for debate: so many of the victims in Gaza last year were, the world was told, members of Hamas. Yet there was rarely any obvious proof – suggesting an Israeli court might condemn a Palestinian, but it may not have reached its conclusion based on sufficient findings.
Elsewhere on ‘x’ today, the ministry has also stressed that “respect for Lebanon’s integrity is urgent and non-negotiable”. Lebanon, right now, is suffering a new invasion by Israel. According to news website NPR “Israel’s invasion in Lebanon is rapidly widening and could outlast the war in Iran.”
Also, finally for this morning, another European country has taken a stand over the United States attacks on Iran: Italy has refused the U.S. permission to use its air base in Sicily for military aircraft involved in Middle East operations – thus joining Spain which has gone as far as refusing U.S. military planes access to its airspace.
Source material: LUSA/ NPR.Org
