The Knesset plenum passed on Monday, by a unanimous vote of 93 to 0, the final second and third readings on a bill to prosecute terrorists involved in the October 7 massacre, granting authority to impose the death penalty and conduct public trials for the perpetrators of the attacks at a Jerusalem military court.
The decision came as the Knesset opened its summer session on Sunday, following more than a month-long spring recess.
The bill was sponsored by MK Simcha Rothman (Religious Zionist Party) and MK Yulia Malinovsky (Yisrael Beytenu), in a rare case in which legislation is advanced and supported by both the coalition and the opposition.
Coalition whip Ofir Katz said ahead of the vote that the coalition will vote in favor of the bill, and supports a reservation in the legislation, which stipulates that the terrorists will not be eligible for release as part of hostage deals.
The legislation calls to regulate the prosecution of those who committed offenses as part of the October 7 massacre before a special military court seated in Jerusalem.
The trial’s key moments, including the opening hearing, verdict, and sentencing, would be filmed and broadcast on a dedicated website.
The legislation establishes provisions concerning judicial panels, public access to proceedings, audiovisual documentation of hearings, and the broadcasting of parts of the proceedings to the public.
It further proposes establishing specific arrangements for the appointment of judges to the court, including sitting and retired judges.
It calls for establishing special arrangements regarding victims’ rights, legal representation for defendants, and the conduct of hearings via video conference.
The legislation also proposes to create a special guard unit to secure the military court in Jerusalem.
It mandates administrative preparations for conducting the proceedings, periodic reporting to the Knesset, and the promulgation of regulations concerning the implementation of death sentences.
Additionally, the bill includes provisions to preserve video and audio documentation of the trials in the State Archives.
Bill needed to issue death penalty to October 7 terrorists
While a bill was passed in March to legislate the death penalty for terrorists in Israel, it cannot be implemented retroactively, causing a separate bill to be required to issue the death penalty to terrorists involved in the October 7 attacks.
Capital punishment has only been carried out twice in Israel’s history.
The last person to be executed by Israel was Nazi Holocaust architect Adolf Eichmann, who was hanged in 1962.
Malinovsky has likened the bill to the Eichmann trials in 1961, which broadcast live and recorded testimonies of Holocaust survivors throughout Israel and numerous other countries before Eichmann’s hanging took place.
During the October 7 massacre, Hamas terrorists brutally murdered over 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and kidnapped 251 hostages. The attacks also included sexual violence and rape.
Speaking at a joint press conference on Sunday at the Knesset with Justice Minister Yariv Levin, Rothman, and Malinovsky, the three spoke on the importance of the legislation.
Levin, who has pushed for the bill, said that, after the October 7 massacre, he had instructed “the immediate establishment of a working team whose purpose is to ensure that the terrorists and their accomplices are brought to trial and punished, and that justice is fully carried out.”
“The law regulates this, including full authority to impose the death penalty,” he added.
Malinovsky said that she had been advancing the legislation since immediately after the attacks.
“Now, nearly three years later, we have reached the finish line, which is actually the starting line – the beginning of historic trials that the entire world will witness,” she explained.
“Everyone will see how the State of Israel is a sovereign country that knows how to hold accountable those who harmed it. Everyone will see how the victims and their families look directly into the eyes of those murderers, rapists, and kidnappers,” she added.
Sam Halpern contributed to this report.