Sanaa: The head of the Palestinian Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs on Wednesday accused Israel of attempting to assassinate imprisoned Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti and called for urgent international and regional intervention to protect him.

According to Anadolu Agency, Raed Abu Al-Hims stated that Barghouti had been subjected to "a series of brutal assaults aimed at eliminating and assassinating him," with the latest incident involving Israeli prison guards firing rubber bullets at him after storming his cell and assaulting him.

On Monday, Barghouti's wife, lawyer Fadwa Barghouti, reported that her husband was struck by a rubber bullet fired by an Israeli prison guard inside his cell, resulting in a painful injury and bleeding. She did not specify when the incident took place.

Abu Al-Hims claimed that Barghouti's repeated targeting by Israeli authorities revealed "a clear plan to eliminate him" and posed a serious threat to the lives of Palestinian prisoners. He accused Israeli authorities of implementing "retaliatory policies" in prisons, including executions, starvation, and deprivation, which he said violate international law and humanitarian norms.

The Palestinian official urged the international community to act immediately to protect Barghouti and other Palestinian prisoners and to end what he described as "the international silence" that has allowed such violations to persist.

According to the Palestinian Prisoner's Society, Barghouti has been held in Israeli prisons since 2002 after years of pursuit and forced displacement, and has spent extended periods in solitary confinement alongside other prominent Palestinian prisoners. A member of Fatah's Central Committee and one of the movement's most prominent leaders, Barghouti was arrested by Israel in April 2002. He is serving five life sentences after being convicted by an Israeli court of murder and attempted murder. He remains one of the most popular political figures among Palestinians.

Although Israel has released thousands of Palestinian prisoners in exchange deals over the years, it has continued to refuse to release Barghouti and several other high-profile Palestinian detainees.