Israel will prosecute Oct 7 suspects in Eichmann-style tribunal

Israel’s Parliament approved a special military tribunal for hundreds of Palestinians accused of taking part in the attacks in southern Israel on Oct 7, 2023, some of whom could face execution.

The prosecution plan approved on May 11 recalls aspects of the 1961–1962 trial of Nazi mastermind Adolf Eichmann, which Israeli leaders at the time viewed as an opportunity for the young state, and for international audiences, to confront the crimes of the Holocaust. His conviction upheld on appeal, Eichmann was hanged.

Proponents say the Oct 7 tribunal could bring similar closure to Israelis who are still reeling from the attacks – and feuding over how it blindsided the government.

Around 1,200 people were killed and 250 others were abducted in the Hamas-led raid on Israeli border villages and army bases. Some victims were burned alive or dismembered, first responders said. A UN report found “reasonable grounds” to believe sexual violence, including gang rape, occurred at multiple locations. 

Justice Minister Yariv Levin said the scale of the Oct 7 rampage, and the prospect of multiple death sentences in a country that has carried out capital punishment only once, necessitated the special legislation. 

“Thus will justice be done and the story of this terrible massacre recounted to the whole world, for generations,” he told reporters.

Ninety-three of the Knesset’s 120 lawmakers voted in favour. Among those dissenting was Mr Ahmad Tibi, a member of Israel’s Palestinian minority who told the plenum that he had lost relatives in Gaza. “I don’t exploit it for politics and I’m not seeking revenge,” he said. 

The tribunal’s framework will likely be scrutinised abroad. The European Union opposes capital punishment and censured a separate law passed by Israel in March that enables the execution of Palestinians convicted of lethal attacks in the future. That law was especially criticized for excluding Jews. 

Hamas is designated a terrorist group by the US and many other nations, and its fighters are deemed unlawful combatants by Israel.

Israel invaded Gaza in response to the Oct 7 attack, starting a war that’s left more than 72,000 people dead, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.

Israel is facing related legal challenges in two separate proceedings in The Hague.

At the International Court of Justice, South Africa accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza, an allegation Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government rejected as baseless. At the International Criminal Court, the prosecutor has sought Mr Netanyahu’s arrest on allegations of war crimes.

At home, the prime minister has stopped short of taking full responsibility for the failings that enabled Hamas to strike, shifting some of the blame to his predecessors and military chiefs.  

The office of one of the bill’s sponsors, Ms Yulia Malinovsky, said there are more than 400 defendants. They include suspected members of the Nukhba, or Hamas’ elite infantry.

As with Eichmann, the venue will be a custom-built Jerusalem court, with hearings broadcast and archived – an unusual step in Israel, where trials are not typically televised. Victims may testify in person or in writing.

Three Israeli human rights groups – HaMoked, the Committee Against Torture and Adalah – warned that the tribunal could draw on confessions obtained under duress from the defendants and risks creating show trials.

“The bill subordinates every principle of fair criminal justice to a punitive and retributive spectacle,” they said in a joint statement. 

Judges at the Oct 7 tribunal will be contracted for up to 10 years – an indication of the duration of the hearings. Some defendants will be tried in groups. 

As with Eichmann, charges will include crimes against the Jewish people, crimes against humanity and war crimes – all of which carry the death penalty in Israel. If handed down, the sentence will automatically go to an appeals court, the defence minister and a parliamentary oversight committee for final reviews.

The defendants’ legal costs will be paid out of tax revenues that Israel withholds from the Palestinian Authority. BLOOMBERG