so I cant bring myself even to read this article but just to say how outrageous it is even to suggest the murderer be freed. Is there no shame left?

would you advocate the release of Benny Sela in order to eliminate rape in Israel?

He's killed fewer people than Barghouti.

Whose to say Israel releases him and he doesnt turn into something worse than Hamas? It seems that the only way to win opinion polls among Palestinians is by the Israeli body count generated. So they fight Hamas for a while for supremecy...does anyone believe that Israelis wont be killed along the way to appease the homefront? This is why Abbas' popularity is in the tank...he doesnt directly kill enough Jews to sate the appetite of the Fakestinian street. Hamas does, that's why they are popular. Releasing Barghouti may seem like a good idea, but who'se to say? One thing you can say about the Middle East...things have a way of not turning out the way you expect.

He should rot in jail till his dieing day. There is no reason to let him out, unless the families of his victims give their consent, but if just one says no, then he stays.

the police would summon Litani to ask him a few questions, including having the psychiatrist check him out. So you're pushing for a convicted murdered to be set loose.

Free Basrgouti after 6 years while Pollard rots in jail now 23 years. If you consider this justice then its a sad day in Israel.

After almost thirty years here I still cannot figure out how Israelis think, especially Israelis like this Litani. You would think that after the catastrophe that Israel made with Arafat, after all the murders and destruction Arafat caused, that no Israeli would think of releasing another terrorist chieftain to kill more of us. But no, this Litani character and his buddy ben Eliezer can't seem to learn anything and they want to release the mass murderer of Jews, Barghouti. Can't the Israeli Left learn anything? How many more of us have to die on the altar of their concept of "peace?"

freeing terrorist leads to more terror, when will you people learn from your mistakes?

It sickens me completely, to know that the chances of a convicted killer of Jews, to go free, are greater than someone who spied for a friendly country. In both cases, Israel gets screwed big time. Releasing Barghouti, Kuntar, or any other terrorist with blood on his hands, as a part of some dubious prisoners deal - means Israel officially condones the murder of its citizens, and makes their kidnapping, a worthy effort. With Barghouti, and Barghouti alone, I'll be willing to make a rare exception - only if Both Shalit and Pollard are included. Pollard deserves to go home.

The weekly "free Barghouti" article by some leftist loonie with zero morals & zero brains. Imagine the howls of rage from this same person if I would suggest freeing what's his name, Amir, the assassin of St. Rabin? I could write all kinds of BS to justify such an action. Of course I wouldn't - freeing murderers is just beyond me, no matter what justification you invent. The left has become the haven of the world's hypocrites.

These officials believe by releasing Barghouti they can help Fatah burnish its credibility for violent opposing Israel. By moving Fatah towards Hamas, they hope it can capture more of the centrist "push them into the sea" voters. Aren't politics wonderful?

I'd like to see the leftists pledge their own lives if their plans fail again, instead of gambling with everyone else's. You already tried bringing in a terrorist to rule the west bank and look how that worked out. You expect a different result from this terrorist?

This says it all, "A close friend of Barghouti’s told me this week:". We know where this guy gets his ideas.

we end up with worse terror, worse enemies, more enemies. The Left is bankrupted. They claimed pulling out of Lebanon and uprooting Jewish families in Gaza would do the trick. And what have we gotten - NOWHERE.

what kind of idiot thinks you can make one 'terrorist' group stronger than the other 'terrorist' group and end up with something better???

In a time of war and criminality, you don't release the murderers, you protect your citizens by ORDERING the military to respond properly. hamas can be crushed, if the political leadership began caring more for corrective action than appeasement and covering up for the most corrupt government in our history

The Hamas proxy leaders from Iran, willing to free Barghouti only to kill a guy and send bill to Israel pay, this is one more and newly trap from Hamas by Iran patrons.

I think it is a big illusion to believe in a lasting peace deal with the Palestinians under Barghouti. Even if one is to disregard the moral & legal aspects of releasing a convicted criminal, what are the chances that a freed Barghouti would improve the probability of the PA achieving dominance over the Hamas ? And if he even succeeded in doing so (which I very much doubt) how would that get a lasting peace agreement more likely given the overall situation in the Middle East? Does anyone remember the last previous PA “strongman” called Mohammad Dahlan & his brilliant achievements in Gaza when the Hamas overtook the PA? The basics of the situation is that none of the Arab (& Persian) governments are democratic & stable. Any potential agreement is subject to the threat of the more extremists elements & to invalidation by periodical government overthrows. Barghouti is not likely to get the military power necessary to regain ascendancy in political & military terms to threaten the Hamas into submission. Who in Israel or the USA would be foolish enough to give him heavy weapons which are not even given to the pro western Lebanese government? Even if he succeeded in this task he would then face the demagogic propaganda & life threatening ultimatums from the likes of Ahmadinejad & Bin Laden (see today’s Bin Laden tirade against the Arab states betraying the Palestinians), So I believe that he would not put his life on the line by agreeing to the necessary compromises involved in a peace treaty. He would more likely seek to get closer to the positions of the Hamas & make the life of Israelis more dangerous in order to extract more concessions & to gain popularity among Palestinians. The real peace process would be even more set aside than now. Unfortunately, it is likely that in the end, the removal of the Hamas threat will fall into the hands of the IDF soldiers since reason & diplomacy are not the favoured mode of operation of extremists & fanatics. This is the likely scenario as long as the Iranians & Syrians are able to supply training, money & weapons to those fanatics.

If he is released it will be time for every Israeli to flee the country for it is being turned over to the terrorists.

the idiots who propose this murderer's release hope that, maybe, if he is released he will, perhaps, work for some sort of modus vivendi with Israel and that, possibly, this will find support in arab public opinion and, perchance, they could resist the animals from hamas. HOPE, MAYBE, PERHAPS, POSSIBLY, PERCHANCE. release the murderer and you'll have another enemy of Israel on the loose, nothing more. that is the only thing of which one can be certain.

For Israel Arafat would be better than Bargouti. Bargouti is at least as hard line and uncompromsing as Arafat if not more but Bargouti doesnt wear a millitary uniform, he knows how to speak both english & hebrew and he can be a smooth talker when he wants to. He will twist Israel & the US round his little fiinger and like Abbas he isnt Hamas so Israel & the US will love him, praise him as a moderate, a peacemaker and all the rest of the praise listen to every word he says and if he says he needs some concesions out of Israel to strenghen his power base we will be asking him what does he need & we will deliver free of charge. Like Abbas in his early years & the prophet Arafat in life he is popular in Fatah and seen as the only man who can bring peace. It seems as long as your not in Hamas your ok as far as Israels left & west is concerned If Osama Bin Laden took over leadership of Fatah we would be calling him the only man who could bring peace between Israel and the palestians. We are all a bunch of suckers for a palestian sob story and Fatah leaders simply because Fatah isnt Hamas so they must be moderate.

This is a clear example of trying to create an agenda. Baghrouti is simply a mass-murderer, no better than Yigal Amir (much worse in that he murdered many people). Meanwhile YNET can ignore 10,000s NIS damage to Israeli agriculture in Yitzhar and Dolev over the past two days. It isn't part of their agenda you see.

Israeli law is a funny thing. This lowlife is in jail for five life sentences for KILLING 4 Israelis and a Christian monk + 20 years for an attempted BOMBING + 20 years for membership in AL-AQSA [and those are only the charges that were proven in court!!!], and now Israelis want to let him go so he can arrange a hudna? Why not just get it all over with, make him President, make Israel judenrein. Where's his Nobel Peace Prize? I can already imagine President Obama thabking US Jews for their votes and congratulating President Barghouti as the first leader of Greater Palestine. What the hell is wrong with you people!?

I seem to have entered The Twilight Zone here. Some of the commentators seem to think there's some connection with Pollard . . . Can I have whatever they are smoking? Let me see … so Israel will say to the US, "Listen if you release a guy who betrayed America, we'll release a mass-murderer. How's that for a deal!?"

What utter, complete, sublime idiocy am I reading here? Even IF Bhargouti was sincere (you wanna buy a bridge?), releasing him would only STRENGTHEN Hamas, as Fatah/Barghouti would be seen as Israel's stooges! The only way that Barghouti could regain any respect would be to outdo Hamas in the killing business. The people who fought 60 years ago would not recognize the Israel of today.