A prisoner, a peacemaker, and Israel’s defining choice

Marwan Barghouti remains one of the most consequential—and controversial—figures in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Arrested by Israeli forces in April 2002 during the Second Intifada, he was later convicted in 2004 on multiple counts of murder and conspiracy related to attacks against Israeli civilians. He is currently serving five life sentences. He was convicted in a trial widely condemned as illegitimate and politically motivated. The Inter-Parliamentary Union—representing over 180 national parliaments, including the US Congress—found “numerous breaches of international law” in his case, stating it was “impossible to conclude that Mr.…