US Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna called on Israel to release Marwan Barghouti, saying that Palestinians must determine their own political future for a lasting two-state solution.
Rep. Khanna of California said in a video message posted Friday on the social media platform X that Barghouti holds a unique position among all Palestinian groups. Khanna described Barghouti as a strong leader who was not involved in corruption and argued that he could contribute to establishing a Palestinian state that would live in peace with Israel.
A call for Palestinians to have a political voice
Addressing Barghouti's past, Khanna stressed that he was not seeking an amnesty or moral exoneration for him. He said some human rights organizations had questioned whether Barghouti received a fair trial, and added that former Israeli intelligence and military officials also supported his release.
Khanna compared the position to efforts to achieve lasting reconciliation in Northern Ireland by involving the Irish Republican Army in the political process. He said Palestinians should be given a say in their sovereignty and in the peace process.
Call for release ahead of elections
The call for Barghouti's release came ahead of Palestinian parliamentary elections scheduled for Nov. 28. The vote is planned to be the first parliamentary election in 20 years. Presidential elections are also planned for next year.
Opinion polls show Barghouti among the leading candidates for the future Palestinian presidency.
Barghouti's arrest and sentence
Born in 1958 in the town of Kobar in the occupied West Bank, Barghouti joined the Fatah movement at the age of 15 and became one of the prominent figures during the First Intifada. After years in exile in Jordan, he returned to the region under the 1994 Oslo Accords signed between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization.
Israeli security forces detained Barghouti at his residence in Ramallah, in the West Bank, in 2002. An Israeli court convicted him in 2004 on murder charges linked to Second Intifada operations and sentenced him to five life terms plus 40 years in prison.
Barghouti did not recognize the court's jurisdiction and denied accusations that he had ordered attacks against civilians. Israeli authorities placed Barghouti in solitary confinement at Ramon Prison in February 2024.
