US Congressman Ro Khanna calls on Israel to release Marwan Barghouti — Anadolu Agency
US Democratic Congressman Ro Khanna called on Israel to release imprisoned Palestinian leader Marwan Barghouti. In his view, Palestinians should determine their own political future, which could contribute to a lasting two-state settlement.
Ro Khanna’s position
As Anadolu Agency reports, Khanna published a video address on the social media platform X. He said that Barghouti has special authority among all Palestinian factions. The congressman also called him a strong and secular leader considered uncorrupt, and expressed the view that Barghouti could help establish a Palestinian state that would live in peace with Israel.
Khanna acknowledged Barghouti’s controversial past, without excusing him or providing him with moral justification. At the same time, he noted that several human rights organizations had questioned the fairness of the Palestinian politician’s trial. According to the congressman, former representatives of Israeli intelligence and military structures had also supported Barghouti’s release.
More current news is available on the UA.News Telegram channel Telegram.
Imprisonment and elections
Israeli security forces arrested Barghouti at his home in the West Bank city of Ramallah in 2002. In 2004, an Israeli court convicted him on murder charges connected to operations during the Second Intifada, sentencing him to five life terms plus another 40 years. Barghouti did not recognize the court’s jurisdiction and denied ordering attacks on civilians.
In February 2024, Israeli authorities transferred Barghouti to solitary confinement at Ramon Prison. Khanna’s call came ahead of Palestinian parliamentary elections scheduled for November 28; this will be the first parliamentary vote in 20 years. Presidential elections are to take place next year. Public opinion polls often name Barghouti as the leading candidate in the upcoming presidential election.
Barghouti was born in 1958 in Kobar in the West Bank, joined the Fatah movement at the age of 15, and became a prominent figure during the First Intifada. After several years of exile in Jordan, he returned under arrangements within the 1994 Oslo Accords between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization.
