Hothouse
Some eight thousand Palestinians are imprisoned in Israeli jails today. They are called 'Security Prisoners.' For most Israelis they are assassins and criminals. For most Palestinians they are heroes and freedom-fighters. With unique access to the most guarded Palestinian prisoners in Israel, explores the evolution of the society of Palestinian prisoners into a democratic community and the impact of such evolution on Palestinian politics out of jail. This impact culminates with the historic elections to the Palestinian Parliament on January 20, 2006 that brought the militant Islamic organization Hamas to power. The prison-experience in an Israeli jail has become a Palestinian national symbol and the prisons are in fact academies for Palestinian nationalism, not only shaping the prisoners` ideas, but also providing a necessary phase on the path to Palestinian leadership. As was the case on Robben Island, South Africa, the leadership of the future Palestinian state is being incubated in Israeli jails today.
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