GAZA (Reuters) – Islamists in Gaza’s ruling Hamas executed five Palestinians on Sunday, two of them on charges of spying for Israel dating back to 2009 and 2015, the interior minister said.
The dawn executions by hanging or firing squad are the first to take place in the Palestinian territories since 2017. Past death sentences in Gaza have drawn protests from human rights organizations. ‘Man.
The minister’s communiqué did not mention the full identity of the condemned. Three of them were charged with murder, while the two accused of spying, ages 44 and 54, provided Israel with information leading to the deaths of Palestinians, the authorities’ statement read.
Reuters was not immediately able to confirm the information from the Interior Ministry.
Israel’s prime minister’s office, which oversees the country’s intelligence services, declined to comment.
According to Palestinian law, President Mahmoud Abbas has the final say on executions, but has no effective power in Gaza.
Since the Islamists of Hamas took control of Gaza in 2007, several dozen Palestinians have been sentenced to death and 27 executed, according to human rights organisations.
(Nidal Almughrabi, Gilles Guillaume for the French version)