In rare court appearance, Marwan Barghouti calls for a peace deal based on 1967 lines
Former Fatah leader who was convicted of five counts of murder during the second intifada is seen as the only contender who can beat Hamas and become the next Palestinian President.
By Avi Issacharoff Tags: Fatah Hamas Israel crime Palestinian Authority Mahmoud AbbasFormer Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti appeared in Jerusalem's Magistrate Court on Wednesday to testify in the lawsuit filed by the family of Esther Kleiman, a resident of Neveh Tsuf who was killed in a gunfire attack in 2002 northwest of Ramallah.
Barghouti, who is likely to become the next Palestinian President, was convicted by the Israeli justice system of five counts of murder – four Israelis and a Greek monk - during the second intifada. There is no question he supported and encouraged violence.
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An Israeli prison guard escorts jailed Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti (center) to a deliberation at the Jerusalem Magistrate's Court on January 25, 2012. |
| Photo by: Reuters |
Barghouti is considered a senior Tanzim member (Fatah's armed wing) and was in close contact with members of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades through his assistant and nephew, Ahmad Barghouti (a French national).
Yet Barghouti's involvement in past terror attacks does not change the fact that in light of the political developments on the Palestinian side – the possible reconciliation between Hamas and Fatah and especially the lack of contenders against President Mahmoud Abbas – Barghouti remains the only Fatah member who could inherit Abbas' place when the time comes.
Kleiman's family turned to a U.S. court asking the Palestinian Authority to pay millions of dollars in compensation for its alleged responsibility for the murder. Bargouti was brought to court on Wednesday in order to testify over ties between the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, Fatah and the Palestinian Authority, yet as expected he refused to cooperate with the court and declined to testify.
The court hearing provided Bargouti with a rare opportunity to communicate with the Palestinian – and the Israeli public. One of the most important messages he conveyed to the many journalists surrounding him was that an Israeli withdrawal to the 1967 lines and the establishment of a Palestinian state will bring an end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
In the past, Barghouti spearheaded the Fatah faction that called for terrorist attacks against Israeli targets in the West Bank, and from January 2002 he even supported attacks within the Green Line. Like many Palestinians, Barghouti drew inspiration from Hezbollah, which forced Israel to retreat from southern Lebanon in May 2000, and thought that adopting the Shiite group's tactics will cause Israel to withdraw from the Palestinian territories.
However, in recent years Barghouti admitted that the Palestinians made a grave mistake by turning to terrorism. In countless interviews he said he supports "popular resistance" – that is, unarmed resistance.
Israelis will probably claim these are nothing more than tactical statements meant to expedite his release from prison. Whether this claim is right or not, Israel faces a greater problem in the near future: the Tanzim leader's intention to run for president, and likelihood he will get elected. According to all public opinion polls conducted in recent years, Barghouti is the only Fatah member who can easily beat any Hamas contender. In fact, the only scenario that can harm his chances to be elected is if Abbas decides to run again.
Yet Abbas has declared time and time again that he has no such plan, and that when presidential elections are held Fatah must find a new nominee. Among Fatah's leadership there is no one besides Barghouti that can unite the movement and beat Hamas. Barghouti himself hasn’t denied he intends to do so, yet on Wednesday he claimed that he will decide after elections are announced.
However, some of the people close to Barghouti have no doubt he intends to run for president, even if it means being elected while still behind bars. He also understands that after the Gilad Shalit prisoner swap – in which he was not included – his only chance of being released is to be elected president. Israel will have a hard time dealing with the international pressure to release an imprisoned president.
There is still no date for elections in the Palestinian territories. There is also no guarantee Abbas will not run again, despite his statements. But if nothing unexpected happens, "prisoner number one" will become "citizen number one" of the Palestinian Authority.
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I don't understand why the left think Bargouti is the palestinian Mandela because he is nothing of the sort, he is a murderer and he tells western politicians one thing and his arab audience something else. Mandela committed acts of terror but nothing on the scale of Bargouti and the main reason he was imprisoned was because of his political beliefs Bargouti was imprisoned for acts of terror ( in an independent civilian court not a military tribunal ). When Arafat went to Camp David Bargouti was even more hardline than Arafat and told him to push for the UN proposed border of 1947 which would have given them 45% of mandate Palestine rather than the 1967 border which is 22%. Bargouti is not going to compromise on Jerusalem, settlements or right of return. Since being in prison this palestinian Bargouti was involved in drafting the Prisoners Document and in it he says that violent resistance ( terror ) must always be an option. Right now Bargouti is just looking for a get out of jail free card and he wants to be heard because he knows that providing Abbas doesn't call them off again there will be elections in May and he wants to generate enough support amongst the west and Israeli left to pressure Bibi into releasing him. What the palestinians need now is somebody who entered politics after oslo ( wasn't with Arafat during his revolutionary days ) and only had a low level position during the Arafat years so that way they are less likely to be tainted by Arafat ideology and have attitudes that are more inline with politicians than revolutionaries because revolutionaries have dedicated their life to an ideal and so they don't want to compromise on that ideal otherwise it seems like all those years fighting for an ideal was a waste of time. A politician thinks of his record here and now and understands that they need to be realists rather than idealists and to be a realist you need to deal with the current situation and put everything else to the back of your mind and if that means you making concessions as well as the other side then you make them rather than make uncompromising preconditions. Get the palestinians a post Arafat leader and we will see real progress, Bargouti is just another Arafat but he tells everybody what they want to hear so they think he is Mandela.
hilarious blindness
A convicted murderer as President, not a good look, but lets face the whole leadership has blood on their hands he just got caught on both sides Hamas and Fatah. For him to be released it would need a prisoner exchange and not for a hostage. That requires a full peace accord that would see political prisoners released as in NI. For that Hamas must change the charter and renounce terror. Which he cannot bring about, but he can marginalize Hamas, but that is not enough. At best he may get trips like the recent one to court, for negotiations, perhaps.
Fatah was established as a terrorist organisation in 1964 by a Lebanese, Ahmad Shuqeiri, three years before the 'occupation'. Retreat to the 1967 borders is just the first step in realising Fatah's dream of eradicating Israel, which is what its charter still stipulates. Fatah, by the way, means conquest
I don't understand how & why a prisoner who refused to testify was given the platform, in a court of law to make a speech to journalists?www.istrue.net
... therefore no hope that this regime will ever let him out... does not suit current settlement policy...
This guy needs to be incarcerated for the same time, for each life he took. That looks like 130 years. Not a day before.
Wowwee, what a great idea! Only he can unify the Israeli rightwing nutsos, only he...
Killed more innocents in acts of terror than Barghouti was "convicted" of, and were celebrated Israeli leaders.
M. Bargoutti maybe a criminal and looking at the record of the Irgun. how much of a difference can there be. Both have killed innocent people in the name of their wanting a home land
let's re-arrest the terrorist Nelson Mandela!
That is actually true, he will split the palestinians if released. It is the castling move Israel has saved in this chess game.
It seems a pre-condition for Israeli leaders to have the blood of innocent civilians on their hands,so why not for freedom fighters trying to cast off the yoke of their colonizers?
Funny to see freedom fighters to fight for freedom by bombing Greek monks ,isn't it.
All those who are criticising Barghouti should look at the actions of Israel in the Sabra/Shatila incident and take not that the Kahan Commission found Sharon responsible to a certain extent. Some times people make serious and despicable errors of judgment, but this does not render them unelectable, particularly where they can later promote peace.
of murder?
Can a long-term jailed man change his stripes or have the long shadows of his cell bars imprinted on his person over the years only make his that much more intransigent?
How else can one explain this article?
He wasn't convicted by palestinian law, why should they care about israeli law, does Israel have any treaties with the palestinians?
Palestinian law does not consider the murder of Israeli civilians to be a crime. It is part of their national liberation and is generally endorsed by the PA - both Fatah and Hamas.
He is not convicted in accordance to the Palestinian law. The Israel occupation and its laws are null and void in Palestine. He is illegaly kept prisoner.
being convicted of murder in an israeli court is probably considered the equivelent of a medal of honor, a chest full of campaign badges and a nobel prize t to the occupied palestinian electorate
"Palestinian law does not consider the murder of Israeli civilians to be a crime." -- Israeli law does not consider the killing of British citizens before 1948 to be a crime.
Has this scenario ever occurred before in modern history where a convicted murderer is elected to office while being in jail ? If not then why the heck should Israel get international pressure to release the murderer.
The 'international' pressure is probably from inside to counter the palestinians. Israel has more to win on bargouti than the palestinians. I do hope they release him as inter-palestinian strife will happen, no one wants to relinquish power.
who he killed, and how(method), because the Israeli courts never did, they just blamed him for anything that any tanzim fighter did.
his name is Nelson, he was jailed on Robben Island for over thirty years........................look him up
This is a fantasy.
If Palestinians want Hamas, let them have them. Israelis should be patient till the Palestinians mature and understand their actual hand in the negotiation table. Keep this guy in prison if he did cause those killings
Actually, he didn't do the actual killing, the evidence Israel presented at his trial stated that he supported and directed such attacks. He neither accepted or denied the charges as he didn't recognize the jurisdiction of that court. More I can't say as I don't care nor examined the evidence, which one has to before doing an informed opinion. Israeli court when concerning palestinians have a substandard ideals concerning evidence.
Puuling out of the West Bank behind the 1967 lines will result in bringing to power an extremist Palestinan regime similar to that run by Hamas in Gaza except it will operate with impunity just 20 km from the center of Tel Aviv
And 40 years.
Begin the terrorist became prime minister ...