Israeli lawmakers to introduce bill for prosecuting Hamas terrorists behind Oct 7 massacre

Prominent Israeli lawmakers Simcha Rothman and Yulia Malinovsky are reportedly planning to introduce a bill that would facilitate the prosecution of the Hamas terrorists who were responsible for the Oct. 7 massacre of 1,200 Israelis – the overwhelming majority of whom were women, children and elderly civilians.

When Hamas terrorists invaded southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, they also kidnapped 251 people and caused major destruction in dozens of Israeli communities located adjacent to the Gaza Strip border. There are 97 hostages still in captivity in Gaza one year after they were brutally kidnapped.

The proposed law calls for a “specialized court for genocide,” with an emphasis on the Oct. 7 atrocities, which it defines as "genocide acts initiated by Hamas."

The proposed bill seeks to prosecute both the terrorists who perpetrated the massacre, as well as senior Hamas terrorists who were involved in the planning and execution of the unprecedented attack on Israel’s Gaza border communities.

Previous efforts to prosecute the terrorists have been delayed by Israel's Security Cabinet, citing concerns that such legal action could potentially undermine the efforts to secure the release of the remaining hostages. In addition, some within the Cabinet have considered releasing some of the Oct. 7 terrorists from their detention in exchange for the release of some the remaining hostages.

Malinovsky, who is from the conservative Yisrael Beytenu party, criticized the Netanyahu government for so far failing to prosecute the perpetrators of the Oct. 7 attack.

"The government had a whole year to prepare for prosecuting those involved, but failed to make it a priority," the opposition lawmaker said. She emphasized that Israel has a moral duty to the victims and their families to prosecute those responsible for the devastating attack.

It is currently unclear whether the new bill will pass, but it gains strength from being co-sponsored by opposition lawmaker Malinovsky and coalition lawmaker Simcha Rothman of the Religious Zionism party.

In January, Israeli officials told The Wall Street Journal they expect the eventual trial against Hamas Oct. 7 terrorists to be the “most significant since Eichmann.” Adolf Eichmann was a senior Nazi official who played an instrumental role in carrying out the Holocaust of the Jewish people during the Second World War.

At the time, Roi Scheindorf, a former deputy of the Israeli attorney general, emphasized the enormous legal task in prosecuting the Oct. 7 perpetrators.

“The State of Israel has never before dealt with crimes and an investigation on this scale,” Sheindorf stated. “This will be one of the most important trials to take place in Israel.”

Notably, on Monday, the one-year anniversary of the horrific attack, Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal, who resides in Qatar, praised the invasion and attack, claiming it would significantly “contribute to the disappearance of Israel.”