The decision was taken by the Constitution, Law and Justice Committee of the Knesset (Israeli Parliament), which gave the “green light” to the proposal according to which minors of this age suspected of murder or attempted murder in cases of terrorism should be subject to same conditions of detention as adults.
The vote was marked by controversy, after a representative of an organization against child detention was removed from the room after failing to receive an answer to a question he asked about possible foreign financing, according to the daily “Haaretz”.
The debate also took place after two deputies – including Ofer Cassif, from the Hadash Taal party – claimed that the vote could not take place without authorization to ask questions, which is why they were also removed from the chamber.
Cassif was recently the target of an attempted expulsion for publicly supporting South Africa’s petition to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) calling for provisional measures to protect Palestinians from an alleged genocide in the Gaza Strip.
The bill was presented as part of the increase in operations by Israeli forces in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, in parallel with the military offensive against the Gaza Strip, following attacks carried out by the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) against Israeli territory.
An unprecedented attack by Hamas on Israel, on October 7, 2023, caused the death of around 1,200 Israeli citizens, with the Islamist group kidnapping around 240 people, of which 130 are still hostages in Gaza, although the Hamas authorities Tel Aviv indicate that 34 are dead.
According to figures from health authorities controlled by Hamas, Israeli retaliation has already claimed more than 32,000 lives in the Gaza Strip.
Tags: Israel approves law allowing imprisonment #12yearold children terrorism
