A Hamas-linked military court in the Gaza Strip sentenced on Monday two people to death and four others to life in prison for “collaborating” with Israel.
In a statement, the court said the death sentences would be carried out one by firing squad and the other by hanging.
The four others were handed life sentences with hard labor, which, in Gaza, amounts to 25 years, AFP reported quoting the court’s statement.
It said that all the rulings were based on the 1979 Palestinian Revolution Punitive Law.
Under Palestinian law, a death sentence requires the approval of the president of the Palestinian Authority, currently Mahmoud Abbas.
However, Hamas has repeatedly ignored this law.
Since the movement seized control of Gaza from Abbas’ Fatah in 2007, its courts have sentenced dozens of Palestinians to death, without the president’s approval.
Last September, the movement executed five Palestinians, including two for “collaboration” with Israel.
These executions, condemned by the United Nations Human Rights Office, were the first in the coastal territory in more than five years.
Last year alone, Hamas sentenced 17 Palestinians to death in Gaza.
The movement has issued a total of 270 such sentences – 240 in Gaza alone - since the establishment of the Palestinian Authority, according to Palestinian human rights groups.
According to Palestinian law, death sentences are issued in convictions related to collaborating with Israel and the drug trade. The Palestinian president must approve the sentence.
