Gaza executions: Calls for urgent moratorium on death penalty as 10 prisoners await execution by Hamas

Three men were executed on Tuesday, after Hamas announced that 13 prisoners were to be killed

The prisoners were executed inside Gaza's central prison (Getty Images)

Human rights groups are calling for an urgent moratorium on the death penalty in Gaza as 10 prisoners await execution by Hamas.

Three Palestinians who had been convicted of murder were put to death on Tuesday in the first use of the death penalty in the coastal enclave since a Hamas-Fatah unity government was formed in 2014.

Hamas defied an agreement with Fatah, the ruling party in the West Bank, by carrying out the executions without the approval of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

Gaza's interior ministry said two men were hanged and the third was killed by firing squad in al-Katiba prison after the victims' families rejected the possibility of a last-minute pardon.


 Hamas claimed the executions would act as a deterrent and avoid 'chaos' 
 (Getty Images)

One of those killed was reported to be a Palestinian Authority police officer.

It came after Hamas announced the imminent execution of 13 prisoners who had been previously sentenced to death.

The United Nations condemned the executions and said there were “serious and widespread concerns” about unfair trials and possible violations of international law.

Rupert Colville, spokesperson for the High Commissioner for Human Rights, urged authorities in Gaza to halt future executions and to respect the rights of life and fair trial.

“We call on the Palestinian President to urgently establish a moratorium on the death penalty in line with the global trend, with a view to its abolition,” he said.


 Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas must approve any executions under Palestinian law 
 (AFP/Getty)

Amnesty International said there were deep flaws in the Gaza Strip’s justice system, including repots of the widespread use of torture.

James Lynch, the organisation’s deputy director for the Middle East and North Africa, said: “The Hamas authorities must halt any further plans to carry out executions and immediately establish an official moratorium.

"The Hamas authorities have tried to justify these executions as a way to deter crime, but there is no credible evidence that the death penalty has a greater deterrent effect than prison terms.”

A spokesperson for Fatah, Osama Qawasmi, said the executions without Mr Abbas' approval were “a crime, a clear violation of the law and a deepening of the split (between the West Bank and Gaza).

“It's a clear message from Hamas that it doesn't want national unity and it doesn't care about Palestinian law”.

Hamas released statements hitting back at criticism from its rival party, saying the implementation of death penalties would “preserve security and stability” and that Fatah’s statements aimed to “create a state of chaos and encourage crime”.

"No one should be put to death, certainly not as part of a legal system in which torture and coercion are common," said Sari Bashi from Human Rights Watch.

The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights also joined the criticism, saying it had made representations to Hamas officials.

“PCHR is in full solidarity with the victims of murders in the Gaza Strip, however, it highlights that the aim of justice is not revenge but ensuring serenity and the rule of law,” a statement said.

“This cannot be achieved unless by the strict application of the law and not violating it.”

Hamas militants surround Palestinians suspected of collaborating with Israel before executing them in Gaza City August 22, 2014. (Reuters ) (Reuters)

The Palestinian Shams human rights group said Hamas had committed “an extra-judicial execution, and a double crime” by failing to secure approval from President Abbas or the justice minister.

The Islamist group seized control of Gaza in 2007 and a unity deal drawn up with Fatah in 2014 was never implemented, leaving Hamas as the de-facto authority in the strip.

The last public executions in Gaza took place in 2014 during the war with Israel, when Hamas killed 23 Palestinians accused of collaborating with Israel, including a group of men shot dead outside a mosque by firing squad.

Hamas' military wing also executed one of its commanders “for behavioural and moral violations” in February.