ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - Foreign ministers from eight major Muslim-majority nations issued a scathing joint statement Thursday condemning the Israeli parliament’s enactment of a law allowing the "imposition of the death penalty in the occupied West Bank and its de facto application against Palestinians."

The coalition — comprising the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Turkey, Egypt, Indonesia, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar — labeled the legislation as a "dangerous escalation," particularly given its "discriminatory application against Palestinian prisoners."

The ministers warned against "escalating Israeli practices that entrench a system of apartheid," denouncing a "rejectionist discourse that denies the inalienable rights and the very existence of the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory."

Iraq on Tuesday voiced its condemnation of the legislation, deeming it to be a“violation of international law and a "dangerous escalation."

The joint statement also expressed "deep concern over the conditions of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli detention," warning of "mounting risks amid credible reports of ongoing abuses, including torture, inhumane and degrading treatment, starvation, and the denial of basic rights," and asserting that these practices "reflect a broader pattern of violations against the Palestinian people."

The legislation, passed on Monday with 62 in favor to 48 votes against, has sparked a wave of international condemnation for its incompatibility with democratic principles Israel claims to pursue, specifically for targeting a single ethnic group while carving out an exemption for Israeli citizens.

Under the bill, Israeli criminal courts would be authorized to sentence an individual to "death or life imprisonment" if they are found to have "intentionally caused the death of a person with the aim of harming an Israeli citizen or resident out of an intention to put an end to the existence of the State of Israel."

"The rule is death, life imprisonment is the exception," Israel's far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir declared after the legislation's approval.

"We did not come to the Middle East to adopt Sharia law. We did not establish a Jewish state to adopt the moral standards of radical Islam," said Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid in a criticism of the move.

Hamas said in a statement Monday that the approval of the bill "reflects the bloody nature of the occupation and its policy based on killing and terrorism."

European Union spokesman Anouar El Anouni labeled the bill a "clear step backwards" for the region on Tuesday. He expressed the 27-bloc's deep apprehension, stating, "The death penalty bill in Israel is very concerning to us in the EU. This is a clear step backwards — the introduction of the death penalty, together with the discriminatory nature of the law."