Combating Terrorism Sustainably
Since the expansion of terrorism in the 1960ies and 1970ies, hostage swaps have become a common issue in Israel and continue to be disproportional. Alone for the years 1984 and 1985, a calculation showed 3502 freed terrorists for the release of 61 innocent hostages. In this way, dangerous criminals are undeservedly rewarded and given the freedom to kill again.
This insane backward evolution of human behavior since the 1960ies was only possible by false “moral” principles. Whether by accident or design, during these early years of terrorism, there was much discussion of the death penalty in the context of general crime prosecution. It was allegedly liberal politicians and mainstream media which propagated a taboo against any death penalty as if it constituted a humanitarian progress – but actually missed the target.
Perhaps, the death penalty is too harsh for ordinary murderers. But it is certainly appropriate for terrorists and pirates, notorious peacebreakers who kill innocent people out of hatred or greed. Their unspeakable sociopathic behavior is absolutely incompatible with civilized coexistence. Just as an honest soldier naturally risks his life, a terrorist must be exposed to this risk even more.
In order to ensure humanitarian treatment nonetheless, the execution of the death penalty should be postponed indefinitely, with the only restriction that some death sentences must be imposed in case of new terrorist attacks. In order to have a deterrent effect while maintaining proportionality, no more than two or three terrorists should pay with their lives for each victim.
In keeping with the idea of giving convicted persons a chance to develop for the better, they should be able to earn “points” by showing improvements in their behavior and attitude. In this way, all convicted terrorists will be kept in a line defined by the seriousness of their crimes and the date of their conviction. Earned points cause them to fall back to a less prominent position in the row. In this context, of course, receiving ‘Pay for Slay’ pensions have to cost points.
The combat against hostage-taking can be easily integrated even without identifying the actual kidnapers personally: For every hostage kidnaped, one death penalty according to the list should be executed and two or more in the case of killing one. The January 2025 Gaza ceasefire agreement with it’s horrible rewarding effect for hostage-taking shows how urgently a real solution is needed. It is about the self-defense of civilized nations according to Article 51 of the UN Charter – and an overdue lesson in responsibility for terrorists.