The death penalty bill for terrorists is being brought for a preliminary vote in the Knesset on Wednesday following the passing of the bill in the Knesset’s Ministerial Committee on Legislation on Sunday.
The vote on the bill poses a dilemma for Chareidi MKs, who are opposed to the bill due to halachic issues.
According to Hebrew reports on Tuesday, sources in the UTJ party say that the party will refrain from voting for the bill on Wednesday. The Shas party is expected to vote in favor of the law in the preliminary reading to allow it to pass, but will not participate in the final vote.
However, Kikar H’Shabbat reported that both UTJ and Shas will vote in favor of the bill in a preliminary reading in order to show their support for the fight against terrorism. The bill will then be brought to the Cabinet for further discussion, and the Chareidi MKs will utilize that time to consult with their Gedolim on the issue.
A Shas minister told Kikar: “Senior security officials warn that the bill will do more harm than good because even if the court will use the law and sentence the terrorist to death, the terrorist will become a hero in the Arab world by the time the trial is over and it will only lead to further attacks. This law endangers lives and this is the position we will present to the Moetzet Chachmei HaTorah.”
The report also quoted an MK from Agudas Yisrael who said: “Apart from the security issues, there’s also a halachic issue here. The Supreme Court can decide at any time that the law will also apply to Jews. Who are we to advance a law that will lead to imposing the death penalty on Jews? Is the Sanhedrin around?”
Chief Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak publicly opposed a death penalty law for terrorists in 2018, citing the same two reasons mentioned above. Firstly, the bill was opposed by Shin Bet officials at the time who expressed concern that it could endanger the lives of Jews around the world who could be kidnapped as bargaining chips for terrorists on death row. Secondly, Harav Yosef expressed concern that the bill could apply to Jewish terrorists – such as Amiram Ben-Uliel, who was indicted for the deaths of three Arabs in Duma – saying that only the Sanhedrin has the power to sentence a Jew to death.
The Yisrael Beiteinu party has announced that it will support the bill.
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, who proposed the bill, conveyed a message to the Chareidi parties on Tuesday, saying: “I assume that everyone in the coalition understands that our strength is in our unity. Voting in favor of a death penalty law for terrorists is not a ‘favor’ that someone is doing for Otzma Yehudit, but rather the existence of a simple and clear coalition agreement, which promotes one of the most important bills in the history of the country.”
(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)
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9 Responses
I am not a rabbi bit I am having trouble understanding an Halachic issue with killing a murder that will only try murdering again .
Please explain what the heck they are talking about???
If the Chareidi parties chicken out of this one:- They are doomed in future elections to loose MANY votes to ben Gvir’s party, since ben Gvir is the only person who currently has his head screwed on correctly in dealing with these terrorists.
Have people lost their minds?
Din Rodef is one thing. But a terrorist who has been captured, disarmed, and is not an immediate threat… unless you have some power of nevuah, this cannot be justified.
Also for the practical reasons cited e.g. weighing the greater risk.
Fenster613
Let me try to explain.
The supreme court can rule that anybody should be put to death, even Jews who committed murder, that according to the Torah, would NOT make them liable to death. This is against Torah law, and is murder, in fact. You don’t have to be a Rabbi to understand this.
Furthermore, it won’t solve the problem either. Terrorists want to die. And it can backfire on ALL Jews worldwide, just like many things the State does.
But, 147 is correct. Most national Israelis don’t care about Torah or Jews. Only Zionism.
It’s always been this way.
It’s NOT the rabbis it’s the evil ShinBet.
They convince the rabbis that it creates danger for yidden especially in Israel and it’s more dangerous for yidden all around the world
The rabbis go by what the “professionals” tell them!
The problem is that these “professionals” are liberal heck’s with evil intentions (they are not thinking about the safety or best interest of yidden)
If COVID taught us anything it’s that we are NOT ALLOWED TO BLINDLY TRUST THE “PROFESSIONALS” The top guys lied and the other medical professionals blindly followed them
IF THEY WERE KILLED ON THE SPOT, THERE WOULDN’T BE A PROBLEM! TERRORISTS HAVE NO RIGHTS.
“If COVID taught us anything it’s that we are NOT ALLOWED TO BLINDLY TRUST THE “PROFESSIONALS” ”
Right, we should only trust anonymous posters…
😉
shoot them dead at the scene so you wont have this problem
no need for trial, sentencing, or death penalty then
The Torah says the earth cannot be forgiven for the blood spilled on it, except by the spiller’s blood. That applies at all times and in all places in the world, but especially in Eretz Yisrael, which is a sensitive land with a weak stomach.
We do not need a Sanhedrin for this. The state will not be administering misas beis din; it operates under dinei melucha, so it is not bound by the restrictions on a beis din, and has the right and the duty to execute murderers, including Jewish ones, even without kosher eidus and hasro’oh.
The law should really apply to all murders. But if it is to be confined to terrorism it should not say “on nationalist grounds”; it should specify “as an act of war against the State of Israel”. There is no reason a state’s law should not distinguish between attacks on it and attempts — however unauthorized — to defend it.