Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has amended Article 98 of the Palestinian Criminal Law no. 12 of 1960, abolishing the ease in punishment against crimes of honor killing committed against women.According to WAFA, Abbas’ legal advisor Hassan al-Uri said that the amendment aims at abolishing reduced penalties when legally dealing with cases of so-called ‘honor killings’.
Under the amendment, judiciary has no authority to seek a lighter sentence against the defendant if the victim is a female who was murdered on archaic ‘honor killing’ grounds.
Of note, the courts have often granted clemency in such cases.
In a recent statement, UN Women in Palestine have expressed concern over 14 reported cases of femicide in the West Bank and Gaza Strip since the beginning of 2014.
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