Today, Addameer for Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association, The Commission of Detainees Affairs, and Palestinian Prisoners Club sent an urgent letter to European Union countries regarding Israel’s recently passed death penalty law targeting Palestinian prisoners.

The letter highlights that the law is explicitly discriminatory, applies only to Palestinians, and is enforced through military courts that lack basic fair trial guarantees. It calls on the EU to take immediate, concrete measures, including suspending the EU–Israel Association Agreement, imposing targeted sanctions, and halting diplomatic and economic cooperation, to uphold international law and protect fundamental human rights.

The organizations stress that expressions of concern alone are no longer sufficient; urgent and decisive action is urgently needed to prevent further violence against Palestinians.

The full letter is attached👇

                           

Date: 31 March 2026

 

Subject: After Passing the Death Penalty Law, the EU Must Suspend the EU–Israel Association Agreement and Take Immediate Action

Your Excellencies,

We acknowledge and welcome the recent statement issued by several European countries expressing concern over the proposed expansion of the death penalty in Israel, and your reaffirmation that capital punishment is an inhumane and degrading practice that must be opposed under all circumstances.

However, we write to stress that the situation has now moved beyond the stage of a proposed bill. The law has been passed.

This development marks a grave escalation. For decades, Palestinians have been subjected to extrajudicial killings, yet this moment represents a shift toward the formalization and legalization of execution as a tool of political repression. The law enables the execution of Palestinian political prisoners, transforming prisons and detention facilities into sanctioned sites of death.

Critically, this law is inherently discriminatory and is designed to be applied exclusively against Palestinians. It entrenches a system of unequal treatment before the law and reinforces a broader regime of racialized control and punishment. Furthermore, Israeli court systems, particularly military courts used to prosecute Palestinians, lack fundamental fair trial guarantees, including independence, impartiality, and due process. In this context, the introduction of the death penalty amounts to the institutionalization of irreversible injustice.

It is imperative to stress that the Israeli Knesset has no authority to legislate over Palestinians as protected persons under international humanitarian law. Any attempt to do so constitutes a war crime and represents a flagrant, undeniable violation of international law.

While your statement highlights the “risk” of undermining democratic principles and raises concern over the discriminatory nature of the bill, the reality is that this law constitutes a direct and profound violation of fundamental human rights. It is not merely a risk; it is an enacted policy that codifies state-sanctioned killing.

 

We are further compelled to note that expressions of concern, while important, are no longer sufficient in the face of such escalation. The passage of this law, despite repeated warnings and appeals, reflects a pattern of international inaction that risks enabling further irreversible harm.

In light of this, we urge the European Union to move beyond statements and take concrete, principled action:

• Immediately suspend the EU–Israel Association Agreement as a necessary measure to uphold international legal obligations and human rights commitments.
• Impose targeted sanctions on the Israeli occupying state in response to ongoing violations of international law and the codification of execution policies.
• Suspend all forms of diplomatic, military, and economic cooperation until full compliance with international law is ensured.
• Work to isolate the Knesset and Israeli military court system in international parliamentary bodies and unions, given their role in codifying systemic discrimination and violence.

We emphasize that continued reliance on language of concern, without corresponding measures of accountability, undermines the very principles the European Union has affirmed. Upholding the universal rejection of the death penalty requires consistent and decisive action, particularly in contexts where it is deployed in a discriminatory and political manner.

Sincerely,

Addameer for Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association The Commission of Detainees Affairs

Palestinian Prisoners Club