[Pnews] Israeli military court reimposes life sentence on longest-held Palestinian prisoner Nael Barghouthi

[Prisoner News]

http://samidoun.net/2017/02/israeli-military-court-reimposes-life-sentence-on-longest-held-palestinian-prisoner-nael-barghouthi/ 



  Israeli military court reimposes life sentence on longest-held
  Palestinian prisoner Nael Barghouthi

February 22, 2017

The Israeli occupation Ofer military courtreimposed the original prison 
sentence of life plus 18 years 
<http://www.maannews.net/Content.aspx?id=893681> against Palestinian 
prisoner Nael Barghouthi 
<http://samidoun.net/2017/02/take-action-ofer-military-court-to-issue-decision-in-case-of-nael-barghouthi-on-wednesday/>. 
Barghouthi has spent 36 years in Israeli prison and is the longest-held 
Palestinian prisoners.

He was released in October 2011 as part of the Wafa al-Ahrar prisoner 
exchange 
<http://samidoun.net/2016/10/five-years-on-the-wafa-al-ahrar-agreement-and-prisoner-exchange/> 
with over 1,000 fellow Palestinian political prisoners. He was 
re-arrested by Israeli occupation forces in June 2014 alongside dozens 
of former prisoners released in the exchange; under Israeli military 
order 1651, former Palestinian prisoners released in an exchange can 
have their former sentences reimposed on the basis of “secret evidence” 
at the discretion of an Israeli military commission.

While nearly 60 Palestinian prisoners had their original sentences 
reimposed, mostly on the basis of association with members of 
“prohibited organizations” – otherwise known as every major Palestinian 
political party – Barghouthi was sentenced to 30 months in Israeli 
prison. At the time of his release, he had been the longest-serving 
Palestinian prisoner after 34 years of imprisonment. He has now served 
36 years in Israeli prison.

On 17 December, Barghouthi’s 30-month sentence expired, yet he was 
denied release 
<http://samidoun.net/2017/01/nael-barghouthi-denied-release-threatened-with-reimposition-of-former-life-sentence/> 
on the basis of an appeal filed by the Israeli military prosecution 
calling for the reimposition of his original life sentence plus 18 
years. He was originally imprisoned on the basis of participating in a 
commando operation with fellow Fateh fighters that killed one Israeli 
settler near the illegal West Bank settlement of Halamish.

Barghouthi’s wife Iman Nafie, a fellow former prisoner who he married 
after his release in 2011, and his lawyers filed appeals demanding his 
release, which was denied by the military court. Now, Barghouthi’s 
original sentence has once again been reimposed, while his family and 
lawyers have pledged to continue the struggle for his freedom and that 
of his fellow reimprisoned former prisoners.

The sentencing of Barghouthi is cast into particularly egregious relief 
coming only one day after the 18-month sentence meted out to Israeli 
occupation soldier Elor Azaria 
<https://electronicintifada.net/blogs/michael-f-brown/israeli-who-executed-injured-palestinian-gets-slap-wrist> 
for deliberately murdering a captured Palestinian, Abdel-Fattah 
al-Sharif, after he had already been wounded and was laying on the 
ground, incapacitated.

*Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network denounces the racist 
re-sentencing of Nael Barghouthi, part of a systematic policy that is 
holding re-captured former prisoners hostage in an attempt to pressure 
the Palestinian resistance through arbitrary detention of long-time 
strugglers for the Palestinian people. In New York City, Samidoun will 
rally on Friday, 24 February at 5:30 pm 
<http://samidoun.net/2017/02/24-february-nyc-protest-to-free-nael-barghouthi-and-stop-hp/> 
at Union Square outside the Best Buy at 52 E. 14th Street to denounce 
the reimposition of Barghouthi’s sentence and call for his freedom and 
that of all Palestinian prisoners. We urge all international supporters 
of the Palestinian people to take action and build solidarity with Nael 
Barghouthi and his fellow imprisoned Palestinian strugglers.*

*TAKE ACTION:*

 1. *Sign and share the Change.org petition to urge international
    officials to take action for Nael Barghouthi’s release:
    https://www.change.org/p/international-officials-pressure-israel-to-free-nael-barghouthi*

 2. *Organize a protest, demonstration, speaking event or banner drop in
    your city,* community or campus calling for freedom for Nael
    Barghouthi and his fellow Palestinian prisoners.

-- 
Freedom Archives 522 Valencia Street San Francisco, CA 94110 415 
863.9977 www.freedomarchives.org
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