Marwan Barghouti, “Mandela of Palestine,” issues a book from prison books

A collection of the writings of imprisoned Palestinian political leader Marwan Barghouti will be published in November, including letters from prison, interviews, personal material and documents from the last three decades of Barghouti’s political life and imprisonment.

As deadly attacks on Gaza continue despite a nominal ceasefire, the 66-year-old is viewed by many as the best hope for the leader of any future Palestinian state.

His book Unbroken: In Pursuit of Freedom for the Philippines is scheduled to be published by Penguin on November 5 this year, the publisher told The Guardian.

Barghouti has been in Israeli prisons since 2002, after his arrest in the city of Ramallah, where he held the position of an elected member of the Palestinian Legislative Council. He was arrested and imprisoned after being accused of organizing attacks that killed five civilians, and an Israeli court convicted him on terrorism charges. The Inter-Parliamentary Union, an international organization, criticized the trial at the time, saying it violated international law, including the Geneva Conventions. Barghouti has consistently denied the charges against him.

Barghouti is a member of the Fatah movement, a rival to Hamas, and has long advocated a two-state solution. Many say Israel’s refusal to release him is motivated by fears that he might emerge as a strong voice for the Palestinian cause.

Born in 1959 in the West Bank village of Kober, Barghouti grew up under Israeli military occupation after the 1967 war and was arrested several times for his political activism as a teenager. Over the following decades, he emerged as a prominent figure in Palestinian politics, calling for Palestinian unity.

The upcoming book will bring together private letters written to the Barghouti family from prison, correspondence with public figures, press interviews, public statements, historical documents and photographs, along with excerpts from his book “A Thousand Days in Solitary Confinement,” which until now has only been available in Arabic.

Barghouti has spent long periods in solitary confinement without being allowed to contact his family, and according to former Palestinian detainees, he has been subjected to multiple serious assaults in prison. In November 2025, The Guardian reported that he had not seen his family for three years, while his lawyer had been allowed to visit him only five times in the previous two years. The International Committee of the Red Cross was prevented from visiting him, a move that violates international law.

In August last year, the Israeli Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben Gvir, published video clips in which he was seen mocking Barghouti and threatening him with execution.

Despite more than two decades in prison, successive opinion polls show that Barghouti is the most popular Palestinian politician in Gaza and the West Bank. His supporters often cite him as a potential leader to unite all factional divisions, and he is described as the “Mandela of Palestine.” His continued appearance has fueled international campaigns demanding his release.

The most recent was launched in November 2025, with coordinated demonstrations and public art installations in Palestine and in cities including London, along with protests across Europe, the United States and South Africa. In December, more than 200 prominent cultural figures – including Margaret Atwood, Annie Ernault, Benedict Cumberbatch, Elif Shafak, Peter Gabriel, Sting, Tilda Swinton, Olga Tokarczuk, Colm Tóibín, Sir Ian McKellen and Gary Lineker – signed an open letter calling for his release.

The book’s introduction was written by Barghouti’s wife, Fadwa Barghouti, who is one of the most prominent advocates for his release. She said in a statement: “For a long time, I have wished that the world would hear Marwan in his voice, and not through the noise surrounding him.” “Finally, this book makes that possible – and I hope it helps people understand who Marwan Barghouti really is, and how he embodies the Palestinian struggle for freedom and dignity.”