Palestinian Iman Nafeh had been eagerly awaiting her husband's return ever since she heard he would be released from prison as part of a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas.

But her joy was cut short when she learned he would be expelled from the Palestinian territories immediately after he was freed.

After spending 44 years behind bars in Israeli custody, 34 of them consecutively, Nael Barghouthi holds the record for the lengthiest detention among Palestinians, according to advocacy group the Palestinian Prisoners Club.

Nafeh's home in the village of Kubar, in the occupied West Bank, is decorated with photos of Barghouthi -- some old, some recent, all taken during his decades of detention.

"Imagine a person who has spent 44 years in prison, and now they're imposing a new punishment on him: exile," Nafeh........

© Al Monitor