The family of Palestinian political leader Marwan Barghouti stated on Monday, July 13, that he was shot in the leg with rubber bullets by Israeli prison guards. Barghouti’s wife, Fadwa, said in a post she wrote on Facebook, that the attack “caused him to bleed and suffer a painful injury.”

According to Fadwa, the violent act coincided with a report by the Israel Prison Service (IPS), which incited violence against her husband.

The report alleged that Barghouti continues to declare his support for armed resistance, despite being incommunicado and placed in solitary confinement for the last few years.

It also listed a number of accusations against the veteran Palestinian leader, including disseminating rhetoric that encourages violent struggle, working to unite Fatah and Hamas under a joint leadership, seeking to exert influence over the Israeli political arena through Arab members of the Israeli parliament (known as the Knesset), and inciting terrorism.

The language of the report reveals an attempt to demonize Barghouti by claiming that he certain acts, while cultivating “a moderate international image” and “consolidating his standing as a leading Palestinian Arab figure.”

Incitement fails to erase Barghouti’s influence

Barghouti’s wife argued that the Israeli report was issued “at a time when the international campaign “Free Marwan, Free Palestine” continues to expand, attracting prominent global figures and leaders and receiving significant official and public support around the world.”

“What the occupation has failed to understand throughout the past quarter century – and still fails to understand today – is that Marwan has never wavered in his conviction that freedom is a fundamental right and that occupation is destined to end,” Fadwa affirmed.

“He has rejected both surrender and despair, believing that resisting occupation while striving for a just peace that brings it to an end is both a national and a moral responsibility. He believes in the unity of the Palestinian people and their land. Marwan’s foremost concern has always been to spare every Palestinian child the suffering of occupation and the devastation of war, and his enduring goal has been to secure a life of freedom and dignity for his people,” she continued.

Fadwa further asserted that although the report wanted to condemn her spouse, it acknowledged the extent of his “status, influence, symbolism, and the global campaign demanding his freedom.”

“As for incitement and aggression, they will not change this fact, nor will they take Marwan away from the conscience of his people or from the conscience of the free people of the world, nor will they take away from Marwan his love for his homeland, his love for his people, and his concern for them,” she emphasized.

It is worth noting that Marwan Barghouti secured an overwhelming victory with the highest number of votes in Fatah central committee elections in May 2026, despite being imprisoned in Israeli jails since 2002.

This in turn, denotes that he remains a highly popular figure among the Palestinian grassroots, given that Fatah is the largest national political faction within the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO).

Zoe. , July 15, 2026

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