TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — A video widely circulated on Friday shows Israel's far-right national security minister berating a Palestinian leader face-to-face inside a prison, saying anyone who acts against the country will be “wiped out.”
Marwan Barghouti is serving five life sentences after being convicted of involvement in attacks at the height of the Palestinian uprising, or intifada, in the early 2000s. Polls consistently show he is the most popular Palestinian leader. He has rarely been seen since his arrest more than two decades ago.
It was unclear when the video was taken, but it shows National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, known for staging provocative encounters with Palestinians, telling Barghouti that he will “not win."
"Anyone who murders children, who murders women, we will wipe them out," Ben-Gvir said.
Ben-Gvir’s spokesman confirmed the visit and the video’s authenticity, but denied that the minister was threatening Barghouti.
Barghouti, now in his mid-60s, was a senior leader in President Mahmoud Abbas' secular Fatah movement during the intifada. Many Palestinians see him as a natural successor to the aging and unpopular leader of the Palestinian Authority, which administers parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
Israel considers him a terrorist and has shown no sign it would release him. Hamas has demanded his release in exchange for hostages taken in the Oct. 7, 2023, attack that triggered the war in the Gaza Strip.
In a Facebook post, Barghouti’s wife said she couldn’t recognize her husband, who appeared frail in the video. Still, she said after watching the video, he remained connected to the Palestinian people.
“Perhaps a part of me does not want to acknowledge everything that your face and body shows, and what you and the prisoners have been through,” wrote Fadwa Al Barghouthi, who spells their last name differently in English.
Israeli officials say they have reduced the conditions under which Palestinians are held to the bare minimum allowed under Israeli and international law. Many detainees released as part of a ceasefire in Gaza earlier this year appeared gaunt and ill, and some were taken for immediate medical treatment.
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