The bill also proposes the establishment of a ministerial steering committee tasked with coordinating government preparations and prosecution policy for the October 7 cases.
The Knesset’s Constitution, Law and Justice Committee on Tuesday approved the text of a bill that would establish a special military tribunal to prosecute Hamas terrorists and accomplices in Nukhba for crimes committed during the October 7 attacks — including genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity — while also barring their release in future hostage deals, according to a Knesset press release.
After passing the committee stage, the bill is expected to be presented to the full Knesset for a first reading, subject to recall in committee.
The proposed legislation, initiated by committee chair Rep. Simcha Rothman (Religious Zionist Party) and co-sponsored by Rep. Yulia Malinovsky (Yisrael Beytenu), would refer charges to a military court established under emergency regulations, with panels headed by retired district court judges serving as officers, and appeals could include a retired justice. Sentences would be decided by a majority of judges, and any death sentence would automatically be reviewed on appeal, even if the defendant does not file one.
Placing the responsibility of prosecutors
At the heart of Tuesday’s debate was a dispute over where the prosecutor’s responsibility should lie. A representative of the Military Attorney General’s Corps, which oversees military prosecutions, warned that the IDF opposes placing the proceedings under military responsibility. The representative argued that the prosecution of the perpetrators of October 7 should be handled by Israel’s civilian justice system as a national task, and that moving it to the military could provoke intense international criticism that would complicate the IDF’s operational role.
Rothman, however, signaled that the commission is moving forward with the military court model after examining civilian alternatives, saying that final decisions will be made by the political echelon and that issues raised by defense officials will be addressed before the bill’s second and third readings.
Devastation inside a house in Kibbutz Nir Oz since the massacre on October 7, 2023. (Credit: ISAFRIR ABAYOV/FLASH90)
Under the current draft, the law would apply to Hamas terrorists and accomplices who are alleged to have participated in acts of terror, murder, rape, kidnapping and robbery between October 7 and October 10, as well as subsequent crimes against hostages.
Proceedings would generally follow civil rules of evidence and procedure, with limited flexibility for the court to depart from them in exceptional circumstances. The hearings will be broadcast on a dedicated website, unless the court orders the proceedings closed. Individual sessions would be audio-visually documented and preserved in state archives. The accused could choose lawyers or licensed Israeli lawyers from the West Bank.
The bill also proposes the establishment of a ministerial steering committee, chaired by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and including the ministers of justice, defense and foreign affairs, tasked with coordinating government preparations and prosecution policy for the October 7 cases.
One of the most controversial provisions — an outright ban on the release of suspects, defendants or convicts since Oct. 7 in hostage deals — has drawn criticism even from lawmakers who otherwise support moving the legislation forward.
Democratic lawmaker Gilad Kariv said his party’s support at this stage reflects the need for coordinated legislation in response to an unprecedented event. However, he argued that restricting the government’s ability to negotiate hostage deals was inappropriate and should not be enshrined in law, framing the issue as an executive prerogative involving life-and-death decisions.
Yesh Atid MP Yoav Segalovitz also made continued support conditional on full coordination between all relevant bodies, while stressing that he remains against putting the proceedings in the hands of the military.
Rothman promoted cross-coalition alignment around the bill, with the committee vote including MPs from both coalition and opposition factions. The only dissent came from Hadash-Ta’al MP Ofer Cassif, who said the perpetrators of October 7 must be punished, but warned against what he described as a tribunal that bypasses existing legal safeguards and gives excessive political influence to the process.
Legislative progress has been delayed for months
The legislation went through several iterations amid protracted debate over the appropriate forum for prosecutions and the risks posed to hostages in earlier stages of the war. Progress on the framework has reportedly been delayed for months, in part due to concerns about the implications for negotiations and international legitimacy.
The bill’s sponsors argued that the Oct. 7 attack should be framed as crimes of international legal gravity — an approach, they say, meant to strengthen Israel’s ability to pursue accountability in a way that can withstand scrutiny beyond its borders.
The committee is expected to return to the bill for further debate before second and third readings, including outstanding questions such as staffing, victims’ rights provisions and budget implications raised during the discussion.
Keshet Neev contributed to this report.