As the two-year-long and one of the most brutal conflicts in the Middle East cools down, Israel says it will not free the most popular Palestinian leader, in the current prisoner swap deal with Hamas, officials confirmed on Friday.
Who is Marwan Barghouti ?
Marwan Barghouti is widely seen as a potential successor to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and remains behind bars while about 250 other Palestinian prisoners are expected to be released in exchange for around 20 Israeli hostages held by Hamas. Senior Hamas official Mousa Abu Marzouk told Al Jazeera that the group insists on the release of Barghouti and other high-profile figures and that discussions with mediators are ongoing.However, Israel continues to view Barghouti as a terrorist leader. He is serving multiple life sentences for attacks in Israel in 2004 that killed five people.
‘Nelson Mandela’ of Palestinians
Israel fears Barghout could become a unifying figure for Palestinians. He has long supported a two-state solution while advocating armed resistance to occupation. Some Palestinians view him as their own Nelson Mandela. Barghouti, 66, was born in the West Bank village of Kobar in 1959. He rose to prominence as a student activist at Bir Zeit University and became a key organiser during the first Palestinian uprising in 1987. After the Second Intifada erupted, Israel accused him of leading Fatah-linked armed groups that carried out attacks on Israelis. He was arrested, convicted of murder, and given five life sentences. Barghouti has said, “I am not a terrorist, but neither am I a pacifist.“
What does the fate of the prisoners hold after the release?
The current prisoner list released by Israel includes mostly members of Hamas and Fatah arrested in the 2000s. Many were involved in shootings, bombings, or attacks that killed Israeli civilians, settlers, and soldiers. The oldest prisoner to be released is 64-year-old Samir Abu Naama, jailed in 1986, while the youngest is Mohammed Abu Qatish, arrested at 16 in 2022. After their release, more than half will be sent to Gaza or exiled outside the Palestinian territories. Hamas has historically demanded Barghouti’s release in every negotiation, but Israel has consistently refused. Barghouti has previously shown an ability to lead across divisions, including registering his own electoral list in 2021 and leading a 40-day hunger strike in prison to demand better treatment for inmates. Barghouti was last publicly seen in August when Israel’s national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir posted a video admonishing him in prison, saying Israel will confront anyone who acts against the country and “wipe them out.”
