Family alleges Israeli prison guard shot Marwan Barghouti

The family of imprisoned Palestinian political leader Marwan Barghouti alleges he was shot in the leg with a rubber bullet by an Israeli prison guard last week, an incident Israeli authorities have firmly denied. The reported shooting, said to have occurred at Ganot Prison in Israel's Negev desert, has intensified scrutiny on the treatment of the high-profile detainee and sparked renewed calls for his release.

Barghouti's wife, Fadwa Barghouti, and his son, Arab Barghouti, stated the injury was inflicted by a guard and that he received no medical treatment. The family said they learned of the incident from Barghouti's lawyer, Israeli civil rights attorney Avigdor Feldman. In a statement, Fadwa Barghouti described it as another episode in ongoing assaults against her husband. The Israel Prison Service categorically rejected the allegation, calling it false and baseless, and asserted that its staff operate within the law and under judicial oversight.

The allegation comes amid what Barghouti's family describes as an escalating Israeli campaign against him. This includes the recent circulation of an internal Israel Prison Service report that portrayed Barghouti as a continuing...