LONDON(RAHNUMA): Hundreds of leading entertainment and cultural figures have signed an open letter calling for the release of jailed Palestinian leader Marwan Barghouti, The Guardian reported.
The 66-year-old peace advocate, who has spent 23 years in Israeli prison, is widely viewed as offering the best prospects for a peaceful solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict due to his reputation as a unifying figure.
“We express our grave concern at the continuing imprisonment of Marwan Barghouti, his violent mistreatment and denial of legal rights whilst imprisoned,” the letter reads.
“We call upon the UN and the governments of the world to actively seek the release of Marwan Barghouti from Israeli prison.”
Signatories include authors Margaret Atwood, Philip Pullman, Zadie Smith and Annie Ernaux; actors Sir Ian McKellen, Benedict Cumberbatch, Tilda Swinton, Josh O’Connor, Mark Ruffalo and Stephen Fry; and musicians Sting, Paul Simon, Brian Eno and Annie Lennox.
Former football player and broadcaster Gary Lineker, cookery writer and presenter Delia Smith, and billionaire Sir Richard Branson also signed the letter.
Experts have described the trial that led to Barghouti’s imprisonment decades ago as flawed. Israel has repeatedly refused to release him.
Barghouti remains the most popular Palestinian political figure, according to opinion polls, and continues to support a two-state solution.
Palestinian figures and observers have spoken out against new laws floated by the Israeli government that could introduce the death penalty for Palestinian prisoners, measures that could include Barghouti.
The international campaign to release him mirrors that which led to the freedom of Nelson Mandela.
That campaign contributed to the end of apartheid in South Africa. “What is happening to Barghouti is the same as what happened to me,” Mandela said in 2002.
Eno said: “History shows us that cultural voices can shift the course of politics. Just as global solidarity helped free Nelson Mandela, we all have the power to accelerate the day that Marwan Barghouti walks free.
“His release would mark a turning point in this long struggle and bring much-needed hope to all of us.”
