Barghouti, who was not granted bail after his arrest, stood in front of three judges in the courtroom and spoke in defence of the intifada and the right to self-determination of the Palestinian people. 'I am proud of the intifada,' he said. 'I am proud of the resistance to Israeli occupation. To die is better than living under occupation. I am standing here because I resisted Israeli occupation.'

On completing his closing statement, Barghouti was told that his case had been damaged because he had not addressed the charges brought against him. Sentencing is expected soon (MEED 7:4:03)