Ramallah, April 1, 2026 (WAFA) – A general strike was observed today, Wednesday, in the West Bank governorates in response to a call from the Fatah movement and national and Islamic forces, in rejection of the Israeli Knesset’s approval of the “law to execute prisoners.”
The Fatah movement called on our people to stage a general and comprehensive strike, launch a comprehensive Palestinian movement, and strengthen Arab and international efforts to pressure for the repeal of this law and to hold the occupation accountable for its ongoing crimes against our people.
The movement said: This criminal law will not break the will of our people or the determination of our prisoners, but rather increases our determination to continue the struggle for their freedom and legitimate rights.
On Monday, the Knesset General Assembly approved, in its second and third readings, the law to execute Palestinian prisoners. 62 members voted in favor of the law, while 48 voted against it, and one member abstained.
The law stipulates the death penalty for anyone who “deliberately causes the death of a person in an act classified as terrorism.” The draft also states that no pardon is possible in such cases, meaning the sentence is fixed and cannot be reduced or altered by any subsequent political or legal decision .
The bill, according to its text, included imposing a mandatory penalty without the need for judicial consensus, and carrying out the death penalty by hanging by the Israeli Prison Service, provided that the sentence is carried out within a specified period not exceeding 90 days from its issuance .
The law includes discrimination in its application mechanism between inside Israel and the West Bank, as it stipulates the imposition of the death penalty in the West Bank as the primary punishment, while granting the military court exceptional authority to impose life imprisonment in “special circumstances,” provided that the Minister of Security determines the policy of the judicial body competent to try the accused .
The bill also grants the Prime Minister the authority to approach the court to request a postponement of the execution of the death sentence in “special circumstances,” provided that the total postponement period does not exceed 180 days, despite the fact that the basic deadline for carrying out the sentence is set at 90 days from the date of its confirmation .
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