By Laura Zuber
Impunity Watch Senior Desk Editor, Middle East
KOBAR, West Bank – On February 22, Majd al-Barghouthi died in a prison while in the custody of the Palestinian Authority (PA). According to a senior PA security official, Barghouti was arrested on suspicion of membership in Hamas and “incitement” against the PA leadership. The Jerusalem Post stated that al-Barghouthi was arrested on February 14, as he left his mosque, where he served as an imam.
While the official autopsy report stated that al-Barghouthi died as a result of a heart attack, his family claims that he was tortured to death by PA interrogators. A statement released by the Palestinian Security revealed that al-Barghouthi was rushed to Khalil Hospital in Ramallah two days before his death, after he complained of pain in his abdomen. After he was examined, doctors determined that he did not need hospitalization. Then, on February 22, al-Barghouthi was taken to Khalid hospital, after he complained of pain in his chest. He died shortly after.
According to Seif Barghouthi, the family learned of the torture from four men, who were arrested with al-Barghouthi and were released after his death. One of the released detainees, Azzam Sahel, said that he was forced to stay in painful positions, including standing on his toes for extended periods, and was forced to sleep on a wet floor in nothing but a shirt and his underwear. Sahel said that he could hear al-Barghouthi in a nearby cell shouting for help repeatedly, but that he did not witness actual mistreatment.
As rumors of mistreatment spread, members of al-Barghouthi’s family began calling for an independent investigation into his death. On February 22 and 23, members of his family blocked a main road near Kobar with rocks and burning tires, demanding that his interrogators be put on trial.
On February 24, thousands of Hamas supporters gathered in Kobar and marched as al-Barghouthi’s funeral. Some 3,000 supporters carried his body, which was draped in a green Hamas flag, and shouted slogans against PA such as Fayyad and Abbas’ intelligence chief, Tawfik Tirawi.
PA security officials have not commented on al-Barghouthi’s death, besides to say that the cause of death was a heart attack. On February 23, Abbas called for an investigation into al-Barghouthi’s death. However, relatives and Hamas denounce any PA investigation, and will only permit an autopsy if monitored by an independent observer.
al-Barghouthi’s death occurs during a time of increased tensions between Fatah and Hamas. Tensions increased following Hamas’s forceful takeover of Gaza in the summer of 2007. Following Fatah’s ouster from Gaza, dozens of Hamas members and leaders in the West Bank have been arrested and detained by PA officials. Hamas officials accuse Abbas and Fatah of “factional cleansing” in the West Bank, which continues to be under the control of Fatah.
For more information, please see:
AFP – Crowds Vow Revenge at West Bank Funeral of Hamas Imam – 24 February 2008
Associated Press – Hamas Members Turn Funeral into Protest – 24 February 2008
International Middle East Media Center – President Abbas Orders a Probe into Death of Political Prisoner in a PA Prison – 24 February 2008
Jerusalem Post – Hamas: PA Violating Detainees’ Human Rights – 24 February 2008
Reuters – Hamas says Leader Killed to Extract “Sham Confession” – 24 February 2008
Associated Press – Fatah-Hamas Tensions Over Prisoner Death – 23 February 2008
International Herald Tribune – Hamas Preacher Dies in Palestinian lockup; Family Alleges he was Tortured – 23 February 2008
Yedioth – Hamas: Palestinian Authority Worse than Israel – 23 February 2008
Al Jazeeera – West Bank Protest Over Hamas Death – 22 February 2008