There is a name that surfaces at each key juncture in the Gaza cease-fire talks. It is Palestinian leader Marwan Barghouti (66), who has been imprisoned in Israel for 23 years. Ahead of the phase-one agreement that took effect on October 10, the armed faction Hamas demanded Barghouti's release, but he was not freed due to Israel's opposition. With only one body of Israeli hostages left to be returned by Hamas and progress toward phase two of the truce within reach, calls for Barghouti's release are again intensifying internationally.

Nobel literature laureates Annie Ernaux and Olga Tokarczuk; Booker Prize winners Margaret Atwood and Arundhati Roy; Benedict Cumberbatch of the drama <Sherlock>; and actor Mark Ruffalo, who played the Hulk in the Marvel ‘Avengers’ series, are among more than 200 prominent cultural figures worldwide who signed an open letter calling for Barghouti's release. British pop musician Sting, the world-renowned Chinese artist Ai Weiwei, and billionaire Richard Branson, chairman of the Virgin Group, also added their names.

They stated: “We express grave concern about the continuation of Barghouti's imprisonment, the violent abuse he suffers in custody, and the deprivation of his legal rights,” and “We urge the United Nations and governments around the world to work proactively to secure his release from Israeli prisons.”

Recently, large murals reading ‘Free Marwan’ have appeared across central London. A massive public art installation has also gone up in Ramallah in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. With support from British civil society, Barghouti's family is waging an international campaign to demand his release in the phase-two cease-fire talks.

Though the name may be unfamiliar to many, Barghouti is the most prominent politician in Palestine. He is likened to Nelson Mandela, the first Black president of South Africa who dismantled apartheid and forged national reconciliation, and is called ‘the Mandela of Palestine’. In the West, he is widely seen as the only figure capable of unifying Palestine and leading the establishment of a state.

Barghouti was arrested by Israeli forces in 2002 on charges related to the Second Intifada, the Palestinian popular uprising (20002005), and in 2004 he received five life sentences plus 40 years. He refused to recognize the Israeli court's jurisdiction over him and declined to mount a defense. The Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) concluded that his trial had not been conducted fairly.

A native of the West Bank, Barghouti is the Fatah secretary-general for the West Bank and a member of the Palestinian Legislative Council, and he is regarded as a potential successor to Palestinian Authority (PA) leader Mahmoud Abbas, who is elderly and unpopular.

Despite his long imprisonment, Barghouti has consistently topped Palestinian opinion polls, earning the trust of Palestinians. In a survey conducted in October by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research (PCPSR), he led with 49%, ahead of Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal (36%) and PA chief Abbas (13%).

The roots of Barghouti's popularity can be found in the nickname ‘the Mandela of Palestine’. He is viewed as an ‘icon of sacrifice’ who has endured long imprisonment for the Palestinian resistance, an ‘icon of reform’ for Palestinians disillusioned with a PA leadership criticized for corruption and incompetence, and an ‘icon of unity’ capable of bringing together a factionalized polity. The parallels with Mandelawho spent 27 years in prison resisting apartheid in South Africa and emerged as a national leaderare striking. In 2002, Mandela said, “What happened to Barghouti is exactly what happened to me.”

In 2006, from prison, Barghouti spearheaded the ‘Prisoners Document’, in which figures from five Palestinian factions, including Fatah, Hamas, and Islamic Jihad, participated, forging consensus on the path to statehood and showcasing his political skill. It was the first time Hamas, Fatah, and others agreed on a roadmap for establishing a Palestinian state. In 2017, he also led a 40-day hunger strike of more than 1,500 inmates demanding better conditions in Israeli prisons.

Having led Fatah's armed wing Tanzim, Barghouti supports armed struggle even as he backs a two-state solution, which enables him to draw support from Hamas sympathizers. In a 202 Washington Post op-ed titled If You Want Security, End the Occupation, he wrote, “I am neither a terrorist nor a pacifist. I am simply an ordinary person living on the streets of Palestine,” and, “I strongly oppose attacks targeting Israeli civilians, but we have the right to protect ourselves, to resist Israel's occupation, and to fight for freedom.”

Paradoxically, Barghouti's popularity is also suppressing his freedom. As he is touted as a powerful next leader for Palestine, Israel fears that releasing him would unify a divided Palestinian polity and give fresh momentum to the drive for independence. During the phase-one cease-fire negotiations involving an exchange of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners, U.S. President Donald Trump said he was considering releasing Barghouti, but Israel objected and he ultimately was not freed.

Barghouti's son Arab told Al Jazeera: “My father knows he can be the guarantor who brings the Palestinian people and political forces together. That is precisely what Israel fears.”

Some argue that Israel should not only block his release but also use it as leverage in negotiations to disarm Hamas. William Keenan, a Middle East intelligence analyst who served at the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), said, “President Donald Trump, who recognized Ahmed al-Shara, a former al-Qaeda member, as the interim president of Syria, would not hesitate to recognize Barghouti if it would stabilize Gaza,” urging Israel to enter talks on Barghouti's release on the condition of Hamas disarmament.

Fears that Barghouti's life is in danger due to severe abuse while in custody are also fueling the push for his release. Since the outbreak of the Gaza war in 2023, his family and lawyers have said he has been repeatedly and severely beaten; in October, his son Arab said Barghouti had been assaulted by guards and was unable to walk properly for days. On the 5th, his son Qassam posted on Facebook that he had received a phone call claiming “Israeli guards broke my father's ribs and teeth and cut off one ear,” before deleting the post. Israel has denied the allegations.

Barghouti was seen once in August, when far-right Israeli politician Itamar Ben-Gvir, the national security minister, visited his cell and posted a video on social media in which he mocked Palestinians and said he would “wipe them out.” Barghouti appeared visibly gaunt in the footage.