The Palestinian Prisoners’ Society (PPS) said on Wednesday that the killing of 37‑year‑old Abdul‑Halim Hammad by Israeli forces in Silwad, east of Ramallah in the central occupied West Bank, is part of a long‑standing pattern of systematic extrajudicial executions that has sharply escalated during the ongoing genocide in Gaza and the intensified military campaign across the West Bank.
In its statement, PPS said Israel has practiced field executions for decades, but the policy has reached its peak amid the mass civilian killings in Gaza and the rise in lethal force used during home invasions and arrest operations in the West Bank.
The organization said extrajudicial killing has now become “one of the central tools” of Israel’s ongoing crimes.
مشاهد خاصة للجزيرة فلسطين من داخل منزل الشهيد عبد الحليم حماد الذي قتلته قوات الاحتلال داخل منزله خلال اقتحام بلدة سلواد شرق رام الله#فيديو pic.twitter.com/Oi93Mw3HCI
— الجزيرة فلسطين (@AJA_Palestine) April 29, 2026
PPS added that the killing of Hammad is further evidence of Israel’s reliance on executions “outside any legal framework,” noting that Israeli political factions have recently approved a legislation to mandate the death penalty for Palestinian detainees convicted of killings classified by Israel as “acts of terrorism.”
The group said such proposals are the culmination of years of killings carried out without judicial oversight, reflecting a broader effort to normalize state‑sanctioned execution.
The PPS stressed that Israel continues to act with impunity due to sustained international inaction, saying this has enabled the expansion of policies that target Palestinians with lethal force.
PPS renewed its call to international civil society and human rights organizations to hold Israel accountable and to confront what it described as a system of impunity that has allowed such practices to persist for decades.
#صور | آثار الخراب في منزل القمر عبد الحليم روحي حماد في بلدة سلواد شرق رام الله فجر اليوم. pic.twitter.com/GtAQZ0i04S
— فلسطين بوست (@PalpostN) April 29, 2026
Hammad was killed at dawn after Israeli forces invaded his family home in Silwad, assaulted relatives, and caused extensive damage inside the house.
According to the family, soldiers stormed the home “violently in the middle of the night,” beating Hammad’s brother severely. When Abdel‑Halim attempted to protect his family, soldiers shot him at close range, seized his body, and abducted his brother and father. The father was later released. The army claimed he stabbed two soldiers during the invasion of his home.
The killing occurred during a wider campaign across the occupied West Bank, in which Israeli forces abducted at least 30 Palestinians in overnight invasions targeting multiple towns and refugee camps.
