Jailed Palestinian leader asks millions to protest

A Palestinian leader imprisoned in Israel called for "millions" to march through the streets in support of a Palestinian independence bid expected to take place in September, according to a letter published by his lawyers on Wednesday.

With his comments, Marwan Barghouti became the most prominent voice to urge mass unrest amid an expected UN vote this fall. Israeli officials fear that even demonstrations meant to be peaceful could quickly spill over into violence, particularly in light of other demonstrations that have swept throughout the Arab world this year.

With peace talks stalled since 2008 and no signs they will be revived anytime soon, the Palestinians have said they will instead ask the United Nations to vote in favour of their independence this fall.

The vote would be largely symbolic and would have little effect on the ground, but the Palestinians believe an international endorsement would put heavy pressure on Israel to withdraw from occupied territories. The Palestinians claim the West Bank, east Jerusalem and Gaza Strip, areas captured in the 1967 Mideast war, for their future state.

Israel and its key ally, the United States, have urged the Palestinians to withdraw the UN bid.

Barghouti said the sight of protesters waving the black, red, green and white Palestinian flag, both in the Palestinian areas and around the world, would strengthen support for the Palestinian cause.

"I call on our people in our homeland and in the diaspora to peacefully march in their millions during the week of voting in the UN," he said in the letter that was published in Palestinian newspapers. A copy was also sent to The Associated Press.

Barghouti, 51, is perhaps the best-known Palestinian prisoner held by Israel. Serving five life sentences for his role in the armed Palestinian uprising last decade, his name often comes up in prisoner swap negotiations and he is widely seen as a future contender for the Palestinian presidency.

Barghouti's wife, Fadwa, said her husband dictated the message to his lawyers during a recent visit to his cell.

Both Israel and the Palestinians have been feverishly lobbying individual nations to support their respective positions ahead of the September vote.

Palestinian UN envoy Riad Mansour said their efforts at the UN should be seen as a part of their step-by-step process toward gaining independence from Israeli occupation.

"There are no silver bullets. We know the process of our struggle to independence. We accumulate points on a long journey to achieve independence," he told reporters at a briefing.

The latest round of peace talks broke down last September, just three weeks after their launch, with the end of an Israeli slowdown on West Bank settlement construction.

The Palestinians say there is no point in negotiating if Israel continues to build homes in Jewish enclaves in the territories the Palestinians claim for their state. Some 500,000 Israelis now live in east Jerusalem and the West Bank. Israel withdrew from Gaza in 2005.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says all issues, including the future of Jewish settlements and final borders between Israel and a future Palestine, are matters for negotiations.

Palestinians have said with talks foundering, they will try build their state from the ground up: creating institutions and seeking more international recognition.

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