“Palestine’s Mandela” – statue of Barghouti briefly stands near UK Parliament

A new statue of Palestinian parliamentarian Marwan Barghouti, who has been detained by Israel for more than twenty-four years, was unveiled in Parliament Square before it was intercepted by the police

The Free Marwan Now campaign said:

Nelson Mandela was once politically isolated and labelled a terror*st before being recognised as a global symbol of freedom and justice. Marwan Barghouti faces a similar fate.

Andrew Feinstein, who has previously worked with Mandela, shared news of the action.

Feinstein pointed out that the same authorities once branded Nelson Mandela a terrorist before later adoring him as a statesman and liberator, adding, “You’d think they’d learn!”

The police intervene to remove a statue of Palestine’s Mandela Marwan Barghouti from Parliament Square. They branded Mandela a terrorist and then revered him as a statesman & a liberator. You’d think they’d learn!!! https://t.co/HxlGHh2Ukk

— Andrew Feinstein (@andrewfeinstein) June 3, 2026

Barghouti tortured in prison

Barghouti’s son Arab Barghouti told Middle East Eye earlier this year that his father had been repeatedly targeted in Israeli prison since 7 October 2023.

Barghouti also suffered four broken ribs following an assault in September last year.

 

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Israeli prisons, or rather torture chambers, have often had recorded patterns of abuse which include beatings, forced stress positions, sensory deprivation, medical neglect, and sexual violence.

Now, in the newest chapter of Israel’s genocide against Palestinians, the Knesset has formalised the execution of political detainees.

UK complicity

Just like the UK politicians like Starmer and his cabinet cannot help but profess their love for the apartheid state of Israel, nearly half a century ago, some British politicians were doing the same for Apartheid South Africa.

Former Prime Minister David Cameron accepted an all-expenses paid trip to apartheid South Africa while Mandela was a detainee in an Apartheid South African prison.

Tory activists were wearing “Hang Mandela” badges in the 1980s, though Cameron has denied doing so.

Some lessons, it appears, are never learned when it comes to corrupt, apartheid-loving British politicians.

Featured image via X/Free Marwan Now