Ref: 18/2012
Date: 15 February 2012
Time: 12:30 GMT

On Tuesday, 14 February 2012, the Military High Court upheld a death sentence by firing squad issued on 06 December 2010 by the Permanent Military Court against J.Z.J., 38, a former member of Palestinian Force 17, from Gaza City. The man was convicted together with two fugitives of abduction and murder in accordance with the Palestinian Revolutionary Penal Code of 1979.

According to PCHR’s documentation, this is the second death sentence to be upheld by the Military High Court in its appellate capacity in 2012. On 02 February 2012, the Military High Court upheld a death sentence by hanging, issued on 29 March 2011 by the Permanent Military Court against W. K. J., 27, from al-Boreij refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip. The man was convicted of treason and involvement in murder in accordance with the Palestinian Revolutionary Penal Code of 1979.

It worth noting that the total number of death sentences issued by the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) has risen to 124 sentences since 1994, of which 25 have been issued in the West Bank and 99 in the Gaza Strip. Of those issued in the Gaza Strip, 38 sentences have been issued since 2007.

PCHR is gravely concerned over the continued application of the death penalty in PNA controlled areas, and:

1. Calls for an immediate moratorium on the use of the death penalty as a form of punishment as it constitutes a violation of international human rights laws and standards, especially the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948), the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966), and the UN Convention against Torture (1984);
2. Calls upon Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas not to ratify such cruel and inhuman punishment;
3. Calls for reviewing all legislation related to the death penalty, especially Law No. 74 (1936) which remains in effect in the Gaza Strip, and the Jordanian Penal Code No. 16 (1960) that is in effect in the West Bank, and enacting a unified penal code that is in line with the spirit of international human rights instruments, especially those pertaining to the abolition of the death penalty; and
4. Points out that the call for abolition of the death penalty does not reflect a tolerance for those convicted of serious crimes, but rather a call for utilizing deterrent penalties that preserve our humanity.