Palestinian groups express ‘grave concerns’ over Marwan Barghouti’s safety

Palestinians express alarm following ‘intimidating’ call to family of imprisoned leader alleging new abuse in Israeli prison.Marwan Barghouti raises his handcuffed hands in the air on the opening day of his trial in Tel Aviv, Israel, on August 14, 2002 [File: Brennan Linsley/AP Photo]Published On 6 Dec 2025Palestinian groups have expressed “grave concerns” about the safety of jailed political figure Marwan Barghouti after his son reported receiving a call about Israeli guards allegedly torturing the popular leader in an Israeli prison.Qassam Barghouti made the statement on Facebook on Friday, but later deleted the post, saying he was trying to obtain information about his father’s health from relevant agencies.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4Four countries to boycott Eurovision 2026 over Israel’s inclusionlist 2 of 4Gaza war amputees mark International Disabilities Daylist 3 of 4Makeshift movie screenings in Gaza City bring children ‘out of the ruin’list 4 of 4Israel awaits return of final captive from Gaza amid fragile peace dealend of listIn the deleted post, Qassam said he had received a call from a person identifying themselves as a Palestinian prisoner and who said Israeli prison guards had beaten his father severely, leaving him “physically shattered”.The person, who called from an Israeli number, said that the guards had broken Barghouti’s ribs, teeth and cut off a part of his father’s ear for “entertainment”, according to Qassam.He added in a later post that he was trying to contact the caller but had not been able to do so.A spokesperson for the Israel Prison Service said in a statement to The Times of Israel that the allegations were “another total lie” and “propaganda” against its prison staff.The Palestinian Prisoner’s Society, meanwhile, condemned the “new act of intimidation targeting” Barghouti’s family, saying it had only further escalated their already “grave concerns” for the prisoner’s safety.“This act is a direct continuation of the organised terrorism policy implemented by the occupation regime against the families of prisoners, in an attempt to break their will and psychologically blackmail them,” the society, which represents Palestinians imprisoned by Israel, said in a statement shared on Telegram on Friday.‘Retaliatory measures’Barghouti, who has been jailed since 2002, is a senior leader of President Mahmoud Abbas’s Fatah group and is viewed by many as Palestine’s Nelson Mandela.Barghouti is serving five life sentences in Israeli prisons on alleged charges related to attacks during the second Intifada, which lasted from 2000 to 2005.He has denied the charges.Earlier this week, Barghouti’s family launched the global “Free Marwan” campaign calling for his release, saying that they feared he may die while in Israeli prison. Hundreds of people, including writer Margaret Atwood and actor Javier Bardem, have signed on to the campaign to free the 66-year-old leader.Following Qassam Barghouti’s post, the Palestinian presidency also condemned what it called the “continuous attacks and retaliatory measures” against his father.In a statement carried by the Wafa news agency, the presidency said on Friday that it held the Israeli government fully responsible for the Fatah leader’s safety and the safety of all Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons.Meanwhile, Ofer Cassif, a member of Israel’s parliament from the left-wing, Arab-majority Hadash-Ta’al party, said he spoke to Barghouti’s family about the call and the reports that “Marwan’s teeth, ribs and fingers being broken and his ear being cut off”.“The family very much hopes that this is just intimidation and that the information is not true. They are waiting to hear from his lawyer about his condition,” Cassif said in a social media post on Friday.“I sincerely hope that this is indeed intimidation, diabolical to say the least, and nothing more. In any case: Free Marwan!” Cassif added.Israeli soldiers walk past a painting of Marwan Barghouti near the Qalandiya checkpoint between Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah [File: Nasser Shiyoukhi/AP Photo]‘Systematic killings’Since Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza began in October 2023, Barghouti has been denied visits from his family and subjected to brutal assaults, according to his lawyer.In August, he was also taunted in his cell at Ganot Prison in central Israel by far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir. A video broadcast by Israel’s Channel 12 at the time showed Ben-Gvir telling the captive, “You won’t win.”It marked the first sighting of Barghouti in years, with relatives noting his “shocking” appearance caused by “exhaustion and hunger”.Palestinians have called for Barghouti to be released as part of the recent ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas, but the Israeli government has rejected the call.Barghouti is regarded as a likely key player in the creation of any Palestinian state because of his ability to unite various political factions.As part of the truce deal, Israel released 250 Palestinians serving life sentences, several of whom were sent into exile abroad. About 1,700 Palestinians who were detained from Gaza and transferred to Israeli detention facilities during the war were also freed.One of the released prisoners, Mohammad al-Ardah, told Al Jazeera that Israeli forces would carry out “barbaric” raids in the prisons each week, severely beating Palestinian detainees. “The latest reports we heard about the great leader Marwan Barghouti is that they broke three of his ribs,” al-Ardah said.As of November 2025, more than 9,300 Palestinian prisoners are being held in Israeli prisons, including 3,368 held under administrative detention without charge or trial, according to Palestinian prisoners’ rights organisations.According to Israeli and Palestinian rights groups, at least 94 Palestinian prisoners and detainees have died in Israeli prisons since October 2023.Physicians for Human Rights Israel (PHRI), in a report in November, accused Israeli authorities of “systematic killings and coverups” and said fewer than 30 Palestinians had died in Israeli custody in the preceding years.On Thursday, the Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs and the Palestinian Prisoner’s Society said that it had confirmed that three more prisoners from Gaza had died in Israeli detention.The Palestinian prisoner rights organisations issued a joint statement identifying the men as Taysir Saeed al-Abd Sababa, 60, Khamis Shukri Mar’i Ashour, 44, and Khalil Ahmad Khalil Haniyeh, 35.The organisations said Palestinian prisoners continue to die in detention due to torture, starvation, medical neglect, sexual assault and systematic violations of human rights.