Marwan Barghouti: A Decade of Defiance
Despite spending the past 10 years in prison, Marwan Barghouti remains at the forefront of the Palestinian liberation movement.
By Fadi Abu Saada | Al Akhbar | March 29, 2012
In mid-April 2002, Israeli occupation forces invaded Palestinian cities under Operation Defensive Shield.
The Israeli government at the time was after Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti, who managed to disappear for three weeks before he was arrested under circumstances that remain unclear to this day.
Barghouti is a member of the Palestinian Legislative Council and the Secretary-General of Fatah in the West Bank, but the Israeli state accused him of leading al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades and deemed his arrest a great success.
The verdict of five life sentences and 40 years in prison that Barghouti was handed is a clear indication of Israel’s recognition of the “threat to Israel” that he represents. This was expressed by one Israeli leader who described Barghouti as a “young Abu Ammar,” Yasser Arafat’s nom de guerre.
For his part, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon once said that he prefers to see Barghouti dead rather than in prison, because he is the engineer and the brains behind the intifada, and he is a symbol of Palestinian national unity and resistance.
Despite his forced absence from the Palestinian public arena, Barghouti is still at the forefront of the political scene. An opinion poll revealed that 55 percent of Palestinians would elect Barghouti if he were to run for the presidency and president Mahmoud Abbas does not run.
The Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research, which conducted the poll, explained that Barghouti swept other Fatah candidates by a big margin, receiving 55 percent of respondents’ votes, while other candidates did not receive more than 3 percent each.
Palestinian political analyst Khalil Shahin refers to three main factors to explain Barghouti’s popularity.
The first is the struggle factor: “Barghouti was always at the forefront of the leaders standing with the people. He had been exiled and detained and with the start of the second intifada, he led the protests,” says Shahin.
“The decisive factor of the legitimacy of any leader,” he adds, “is joining the ranks of the people and that is what Barghouti did.”
The second factor, according to Shahin, is “the nature of the discourse adopted by Barghouti as it is nationalist par excellence. It is not factional and it is not Fatah-centered. Barghouti walked in the footsteps of national leaders like the late Arafat, George Habash, Abu Iyad, Abu Jihad, and others.”
The third factor has to do with “the staunch positions” held by Barghouti and “represented in the last message he issued from prison in which he spoke about the political process, the senseless negotiations, reconciliation, and corruption which might push for the adoption of an new path in the Palestinian strategy for the next phase.”
In addition, the vision proposed by Barghouti, says Shahin, “scares Israel because it might represent the opening of new path in Palestinian resistance against Israel in order to isolate it internationally, which Israel considers a grave danger.”
Despite his imprisonment, the Israelis could not stop Barghouti’s continued struggle as he issued a series of messages to the Palestinian people from inside his prison cell.
On the 10th anniversary of his arrest, Barghouti called for an end to all forms of security and economic cooperation with Israel and for launching wide-ranging popular resistance.
“Experience has demonstrated that there is no partner for peace in Israel. Even worse, settlement building multiplied three or four times over the course of two decades of negotiations and the Judiazation of Jerusalem is accelerating in an unprecedented manner,” his message read.
“We must confirm the absolute right of our people to resist the occupation by all forms, means, and methods, and concentrate this resistance in the territories occupied in 1967 while highlighting the importance of choosing the appropriate form and method for the current phase,” he added.
Barghouti also spoke in his letter about the importance of achieving reconciliation and national unity, and the need for the Palestinian leadership to deal seriously and responsibly with this issue.
He urged pairing resistance with work at the level of diplomacy, politics, and negotiations, as well as struggle and popular activism.
He called for a complete official and popular boycott of Israeli products and goods, and for encouraging people to purchase Palestinian products. He also called for renewing efforts to achieve Palestinian membership in the United Nations.
Barghouti did not forget the most important issue and that is battling corruption which he saw as another face of the occupation. He said “the symbols of corruption who have not been held accountable yet must be held to account.”
Palestinian public opinion might differ on the question of reconciliation but there is an agreement on Barghouti’s strong presence and his nationalist discourse.
Despite him being in prison for 10 years, he has the final word on many sensitive matters having to do with the issue of prisoners, Fatah, and the Palestinian Authority.
Exist to Resist
The Palestinian prisoner and MP Marwan Barghouti was born in 1959 in the village of Kobar to the northwest of Ramallah. He joined Fatah at the age of 15.
He was arrested and put in prison by the Israeli occupation forces in 1976 when he was only 18 years old.
After his release, Barghouti headed the Birzeit University Student Council and graduated with a degree in History and Political Science and an MA in International Relations.
He was arrested again in 2002 and has been in prison since then.
Related articles
- Jailed Fatah leader calls to end ties with Israel (altahrir.wordpress.com)
Share this:
- Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
- Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)
- Click to print (Opens in new window)
- Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
- More
- Click to share on Skype (Opens in new window)
- Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window)
- Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
- Click to share on Telegram (Opens in new window)
- Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
- Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
- Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window)
- Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
Related
March 29, 2012 - Posted by aletho | Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism, Solidarity and Activism, Timeless or most popular | Fatah, Marwan Barghouti, Operation Defensive Shield, Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research
Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.
Featured Video
UPDATE ON HOT LOTS USING CDC LIST OF LOT NUMBERS
For more videos go to the Aletho News – Video Category
or go to
Aletho News Archives – Video-Images
From the Archives
Fifteen Years Before Kennedy, Zionists Murdered Forrestal
By Laurent Guyénot • Unz Review • January 27, 2020
Israel as serial murderer
In the 1990s, a couple of bestsellers brought to the knowledge of a large public the fact that JFK’s assassination in 1963 solved an intense crisis over Israel’s secret nuclear program. In one of his last letters to Kennedy, quoted by Seymour Hersh in The Samson Option (1991), Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion complained: “Mr. President, my people have the right to exist […] and this existence is in danger.”[1] The nuclear option was judged vital for Israel, and JFK opposed it. A Haaretz review of Avner Cohen’s book Israel and the Bomb (1998) puts it this way:
“The murder of American President John F. Kennedy brought to an abrupt end the massive pressure being applied by the US administration on the government of Israel to discontinue the nuclear program. Cohen demonstrates at length the pressures applied by Kennedy on Ben-Gurion. […] The book implied that, had Kennedy remained alive, it is doubtful whether Israel would today have a nuclear option.”[2]
Also openly discussed by Israeli historians today are the close connections between Ben-Gurion’s network in the U.S. and what Tel-Aviv professor Robert Rockaway calls “Gangsters for Zion”, including the infamous “Murder, Incorporated”, run by Bugsy Siegel and then by Mickey Cohen, Jack Ruby’s mentor. … continue
Blog Roll
Visits Since December 2009
- 5,797,607 hits
Looking for something?
Archives
Calendar
Categories
Aletho News Civil Liberties Corruption Deception Economics Environmentalism Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism Fake News False Flag Terrorism Full Spectrum Dominance Illegal Occupation Mainstream Media, Warmongering Malthusian Ideology, Phony Scarcity Militarism Progressive Hypocrite Russophobia Science and Pseudo-Science Solidarity and Activism Subjugation - Torture Supremacism, Social Darwinism Timeless or most popular Video War Crimes Wars for IsraelTags
9/11 Afghanistan Africa AIPAC al-Qaeda Argentina Australia BBC Benjamin Netanyahu Brazil Canada Central Intelligence Agency China CIA CNN Colombia Covid-19 COVID-19 Vaccine Da’esh Donald Trump Egypt European Union Facebook FBI France Gaza Germany Google Hamas Hebron Hezbollah Hillary Clinton Human rights India Iran Iraq ISIS Israel Israeli settlement Japan Jerusalem Joe Biden Korea Latin America Lebanon Libya Middle East National Security Agency NATO New York Times North Korea NSA Obama Pakistan Palestine Qatar Russia Sanctions against Iran Saudi Arabia Syria The Guardian Turkey Twitter UAE UK Ukraine United Nations United States USA Venezuela Washington Post West Bank Yemen YouTube ZionismRecent Comments
Sparrow on Abu Akleh family says it is in… brianharryaustralia on Abu Akleh family says it is in… roberthstiver on Russia Remains Committed to En… brianharryaustralia on ICC: International Federation… roberthstiver on ICC: International Federation… roberthstiver on Abu Akleh family says it is in… MR KEVIN HIATT on Warning: many people will die… roberthstiver on Israel accused of withholding… Balthasar Gerards on The Dutch Farmers’ Protest and… Balthasar Gerards on Turkey, NATO joined at hips bu… brianharryaustralia on The Collapse of the Canadian U… brianharryaustralia on The Insufferable Arrogance of…
Aletho News
- ICC: International Federation of Journalists to be lawsuit partner against Israel July 4, 2022
- Abu Akleh family says it is incredulous at today’s announcement by US State Department on killing of Shireen July 4, 2022
- Russia Remains Committed to Ending ‘War Against Journalists’ – Lavrov July 4, 2022
- Our latest polls show twice as many people died from the vaccine as from COVID July 4, 2022
- Israel accused of withholding dead Palestinians in university labs July 4, 2022
- Warning: many people will die because of these COVID injections, many healthy children WILL die due to these shots… July 4, 2022
- Russia comments on UN Security Council expansion prospects July 4, 2022
- Russia makes massive oil discovery in the Arctic July 4, 2022
- UPDATE ON HOT LOTS USING CDC LIST OF LOT NUMBERS July 4, 2022
- The Collapse of the Canadian University and the Rise of the Church of Covid July 4, 2022
- Meryl Nass’ personal tale of how she got here July 4, 2022
- FBI rented Istanbul villa for Daesh suspects before alerting Turkish authorities, report reveals July 3, 2022
- NATO boss lets the cat out of the bag: US-led bloc has ‘been preparing since 2014’ for proxy conflict with Russia July 3, 2022
- Donbass republic fully liberated – Russian defense minister July 3, 2022
- Turkey detains Russian-flagged vessel carrying grain – media July 3, 2022
- Turkey, NATO joined at hips but think differently July 3, 2022
- US Military Aid to Ukraine Will Only End With ‘Real Political Revolution’ in America, Analyst Warns July 3, 2022
- Ukraine fires ballistic missiles at Russian city – MoD July 3, 2022
OffGuardian
- This July 4th we should ALL declare our independence from the New Normal July 4, 2022
- This Week in the New Normal #36 July 3, 2022
- AUDIO: Kit Knightly on Jerm Warfare with Jeremy Nell July 2, 2022
Richie Allen
- There Are Fewer Pubs In England & Wales Than Ever Before July 4, 2022
- Germans Told To Prepare For Possible Warm Water Rationing July 4, 2022
- SAS Bans Offensive Nicknames July 4, 2022
- UK To Breed Climate Resistant Crops To Ensure Food Security July 4, 2022
Consent Factory
- The Federal Republic of New Normal Germany June 20, 2022
If Americans Knew
Not A Lot Of People Know That
- Mayorkas says immigration crisis due to climate change July 3, 2022
- Yes, You CAN Blame Biden For High Energy Prices July 3, 2022
- Coldest, Wettest & Stormiest – The Good Old Days Before Global Warming July 3, 2022
- Obama/Biden’s EPA Power Grab Blown Up July 2, 2022
No Tricks Zone
Sebastian Rushworth M.D.
- Does sunscreen prevent skin ageing? July 2, 2022
More Links
Contact:
atheonews (at) gmail.comDisclaimer
This site is provided as a research and reference tool. Although we make every reasonable effort to ensure that the information and data provided at this site are useful, accurate, and current, we cannot guarantee that the information and data provided here will be error-free. By using this site, you assume all responsibility for and risk arising from your use of and reliance upon the contents of this site.
This site and the information available through it do not, and are not intended to constitute legal advice. Should you require legal advice, you should consult your own attorney.
Nothing within this site or linked to by this site constitutes investment advice or medical advice.
Materials accessible from or added to this site by third parties, such as comments posted, are strictly the responsibility of the third party who added such materials or made them accessible and we neither endorse nor undertake to control, monitor, edit or assume responsibility for any such third-party material.
The posting of stories, commentaries, reports, documents and links (embedded or otherwise) on this site does not in any way, shape or form, implied or otherwise, necessarily express or suggest endorsement or support of any of such posted material or parts therein.
The word “alleged” is deemed to occur before the word “fraud.” Since the rule of law still applies. To peasants, at least.
Fair Use
This site contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc. We believe this constitutes a ‘fair use’ of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. For more info go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond ‘fair use’, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.
DMCA Contact
This is information for anyone that wishes to challenge our “fair use” of copyrighted material.
If you are a legal copyright holder or a designated agent for such and you believe that content residing on or accessible through our website infringes a copyright and falls outside the boundaries of “Fair Use”, please send a notice of infringement by contacting atheonews@gmail.com.
We will respond and take necessary action immediately.
If notice is given of an alleged copyright violation we will act expeditiously to remove or disable access to the material(s) in question.
All 3rd party material posted on this website is copyright the respective owners / authors. Aletho News makes no claim of copyright on such material.