Türk Urges Repeal Of Special Military Tribunal Law Passed By Israeli Knesset

GENEVA (13 May 2026) – UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk on Thursday called for the law passed by the Israeli Knesset creating a special military court to prosecute Palestinians accused of links to the 7 October 2023 attacks to be repealed.

“The victims of the atrocities committed on 7 October deserve justice and their families and loved ones deserve the full truth. There must be full accountability for these horrific attacks, but this cannot be achieved through trials that fall short of international standards,” Türk said.

Focusing exclusively on Palestinians, the new court will not have jurisdiction over potential criminal responsibility of others in respect of those events, or over alleged crimes committed by Israeli forces in the occupied Palestinian territory at that time or since.

“This law will inevitably institutionalise one-sided justice and discrimination against Palestinians, which cannot be in anyone's interest and runs counter to international human rights law,” the High Commissioner said.

“The law allows further erosion of fair trial guarantees through its introduction of mass trials, which undermine the presumption of innocence by their premise of collective guilt rather than evidence of an individual’s criminal acts.”

There are also serious concerns that the court could allow the admission of evidence obtained under duress, in violation of international law.

“The mandatory death penalty is appalling and risks an irreversible miscarriage of justice for Palestinians convicted under the law,” said Türk. “Its application to residents of the occupied Palestinian territory is in violation of the clear and unambiguous due process guarantees contained in international humanitarian law and would therefore constitute a war crime.”

“This law must be overturned.”

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