Marwan Barghouti, the most popular and potentially unifying Palestinian leader, is not among the prisoners Israel plans to free as part of the new Gaza ceasefire exchange, officials said. A list of roughly 250 Palestinians posted Friday on the Israeli government website did not include Barghouti, nor several other high-profile detainees long demanded by Hamas, and it was unclear if the list was final.
Hamas senior official Mousa Abu Marzouk told Al Jazeera that the group remains firm on releasing Barghouti and other prominent figures and is negotiating with mediators. Israel considers Barghouti a terrorist; he is serving multiple life sentences after a 2004 conviction linked to attacks that killed five people.
Beyond legal labels, some analysts fear Israel is wary of Barghouti because he commands broad Palestinian support and could emerge as a rallying, post-incarceration political leader. Supporters compare his stature to that of Nelson Mandela; polls consistently show him as the most popular Palestinian politician and a possible successor to an ageing Mahmoud Abbas.
Under the ceasefire arrangement that took effect Friday, Hamas is to free about 20 living Israeli hostages by Monday, while Israel will release roughly 250 convicted Palestinians and about 1,700 people seized from Gaza and held without charge over recent years. Many on the Israeli list were arrested during the 2000s—an era marked by the violent Second Intifada—and were convicted for attacks that killed or tried to kill Israelis. More than half of those freed will reportedly be sent to Gaza or forced into exile outside the Palestinian territories.
The list includes figures such as Iyad Abu al-Rub, an Islamic Jihad commander convicted in connection with suicide bombings that killed 13 people, and the oldest inmate to be released, 64-year-old Samir Abu Naama, arrested in 1986. The youngest named is Mohammed Abu Qatish, arrested at 16 in 2022 for an attempted stabbing.
Barghouti has long been a central demand in prisoner negotiations. He has tried to bridge Palestinian political divisions during his imprisonment — registering an electoral list in 2021 and leading a lengthy hunger strike demanding better prison conditions. His mix of nationalist politics and past endorsement of armed resistance has made him both a unifying figure for many Palestinians and a concern for Israeli leaders who fear his release could strengthen Palestinian institutions and challenge the current political order.
