RAMALLAH, (PIC)
Iman Nafe’s joy at her husband Nael Barghouti’s expected release from Israeli prisons—under a ceasefire agreement that came into effect on Sunday—quickly turned to sorrow when she learned that his name was among those slated for exile from Palestinian territories.
Barghouti, 68, spent nearly 44 years in Israeli prisons, including 34 consecutive years, after being rearrested in 2014 following his release in the 2011 Wafaa Al-Ahrar (Shalit) prisoner exchange deal. According to the Palestinian Prisoners Society, he holds the record for the longest imprisonment by Israel.
“I felt immense happiness when I saw his name on the list published by the Israeli Ministry of Justice, which included hundreds of Palestinian detainees set to be released in the first phase of the agreement in exchange for 33 Israeli captives detained on October 7, 2023,” Nafe told AFP.
She added, “I spent days eagerly awaiting this announcement. I redecorated the house and hung pictures of him—some from when he was 18, others from his sixties—all taken inside prison. But the excitement evaporated when I realized my husband was among those to be exiled from Palestinian lands, as per the Israeli list.”
“Of course, I was deeply saddened,” she said. “I had been waiting impatiently and never imagined that Nael would face a new punishment of being banished from his homeland. This is, I believe, the harshest punishment in history.”
Nafe further stated that the exile decision is “unacceptable to us. I’m certain Nael will refuse it and would prefer to remain in prison rather than be forced into exile. Imagine someone who has spent 44 years in prison being subjected to a new punishment of separation from his family, land, and home.”
The first phase of the ceasefire agreement, set to conclude within 42 days, includes the release of 33 Israeli captives in exchange for 1,900 Palestinian detainees. It coincides with a cessation of hostilities in Gaza.
Barghouti is on the release list, although he was sentenced to life in prison for allegedly killing an Israeli officer and carrying out attacks on Israeli targets. Over 230 Palestinians serving life sentences are to be freed under the agreement, but they will be permanently exiled. While the destination remains unspecified, Hamas sources involved in the negotiations mentioned Turkey and Qatar as possibilities.
On Sunday, Al-Qassam Brigades released three Israeli women in exchange for 90 Palestinian prisoners, marking the first day of the ceasefire in Gaza.
Barghouti was first arrested in 1978 as a member of the Fatah movement. He was released in the 2011 Wafaa Al-Ahrar deal, which exchanged 1,027 Palestinian prisoners for a captured Israeli soldier held by Al-Qassam Brigades. However, on June 18, 2014, after 32 months of freedom, Israeli forces rearrested 70 freed prisoners from the 2011 deal following the kidnapping of three settlers in al-Khalil. Most of them, including Barghouti, had their original sentences reinstated.
32 months of freedom
Nafe herself was imprisoned in 1987 during the Palestinian Intifada on charges of resisting the occupation, serving 10 years. She recalled how Barghouti saw her on Israeli TV from his prison cell and decided to marry her upon his release.
“I didn’t even know about it at the time. After I was released in 1997, his family approached me for marriage, but due to circumstances, it didn’t happen then. I had never met Nael before. We finally met when he was released in 2011, and a month later, we were married. But we only lived together for 32 months before his rearrest,” she said.
“Our wedding was a national celebration,” Nafe reminisced. “Everyone was happy for us. It symbolized hope for reunion and freedom.”
After his release in 2011, Barghouti was placed under house arrest in his hometown of Kobar, north of Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank. During this time, he tended to his garden, planting orange and olive trees. “I’ve been waiting for him to come home and eat from the trees he planted,” Nafe said. “But now he’s 68 years old—this is the height of injustice.”