The Arab League strongly condemned on Thursday the Israeli Knesset’s approval of a law allowing the execution of Palestinian prisoners.
It urged the international community, particularly the United Nations Security Council and the United Nations Human Rights Council, to act urgently to compel Israel to repeal it.
Meeting at Palestine’s request, the Arab League Council, at the level of permanent representatives, convened an extraordinary session in Cairo, chaired by Bahrain, to address what it described as a “racist and invalid” law, and to discuss Arab and international steps to confront systematic Israeli violations in Jerusalem.
A 21-point resolution adopted at the meeting said limiting the death penalty to Palestinian prisoners amounted to “entrenching an apartheid system imposed by Israel,” holding “Israel, the illegal occupying power, fully responsible for the legal and humanitarian consequences.”
The Arab League called for listing Israel’s National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and members of his party, along with Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and their party members, on “international, regional, and national terrorism lists,” and welcomed condemnations of the law by several countries and the European Union.
It urged states party to the Fourth Geneva Convention to annul the law, and called on the International Criminal Court to open an urgent investigation and prosecute Israeli officials responsible for its approval, describing it as a “war crime.”
The Arab League also called for activating a legal monitoring unit to document any implementation of the law for use before international courts, and urged Arab parliamentary bodies to work toward suspending the Knesset’s membership in the Inter-Parliamentary Union.
Foreign ministers from Saudi Arabia, Türkiye, Egypt, Indonesia, Jordan, Pakistan, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates also condemned the law, warning it entrenches an apartheid system and promotes rhetoric denying the Palestinian people’s inalienable rights and presence in occupied territory.
Regarding Jerusalem, the Arab League condemned what it described as unprecedented Israeli measures to close Al-Aqsa Mosque, calling it a “flagrant violation of international law” and an unprecedented provocation to Muslims worldwide, as well as an assault on freedom of worship. It also condemned measures targeting the Christian presence in the city.
The Arab League denounced Israeli efforts to dismantle the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East and shut its offices and schools in Jerusalem, calling it an attempt to erase the refugee issue from final status talks.
It called for coordinated Arab, Islamic, and international action, political, diplomatic, economic, and legal, to protect Jerusalem and its holy sites, urging the international community, including the UN Security Council, to take a firm stance obliging Israel to halt its violations.
The Arab League reiterated its rejection of any move to alter Jerusalem’s legal status, including relocating diplomatic missions, and warned Argentina against moving its embassy to the city, saying such a move would damage Arab-Argentine relations.
Arab League Assistant Secretary-General for Palestine Affairs Faed Mustafa told the Cairo meeting that developments in Jerusalem and measures targeting Palestinian prisoners are “two facets of one policy,” urging a shift from condemnation to concrete action and impact.
Former Egyptian assistant foreign minister Mohamed Hegazy told Asharq Al-Awsat the meeting was a necessary step toward unifying the Arab stance and moving beyond political condemnation.
He called for a serious international debate on sanctions against Israel if violations continue.
