Abdullah Barghouti

Abdullah Ghaleb Barghouti (, born 1972 ) is a Palestinian leading commander in Hamas' armed wing, the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, in the West Bank. He was also one of the organization's chief bomb makers. Barghouti is currently serving 67 life-term sentences in Israeli prison.

Hamas In 1999, Barghouti traveled to the West Bank where he joined the Hamas paramilitary group. He is considered by Ynet as Hamas' "engineer", Following a deterioration in relations between the PA and Israel in January 2002, Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti lobbied Jibril Rajoub, chief of the PA security forces, to release Abdullah Barghouti. He returned to Hamas activities.

Barghouti was arrested by the Israeli Shin Bet security service in March 2003. An Israeli military court sentenced him to 67 life terms plus 5,200 years in prison. The sentence was the longest given out in Israel's history. Barghouti is incarcerated at Gilboa Prison near Beit She'an. He is held in solitary confinement and is not allowed family visits.

The Israeli government refused to release Barghouti as part of the 2011 Gilad Shalit prisoner exchange. The Palestinian Authority has paid Barghouti a pension throughout his imprisonment.

Novel Barghouti is the author of Prince of the Shadow: Engineer on the Road, a novel composed in 2012 during his incarceration, which blends elements of memoir and fiction to recount his life, resistance, and years in solitary confinement. The narrative begins with a question from his daughter, asking “Who are you and why are you?” and proceeds to relate his responses, his struggle against imprisonment, and the inner life of a prisoner under occupation.