Fakhri Barghouti grimaced in pain as an exultant crowd lifted him onto their shoulders next to his son Shadi, released from an Israeli jail on Saturday under a Gaza ceasefire deal.

Though Barghouti, 71, shed tears of joy at seeing his son, he was also in physical pain.

The night before, Israeli forces stormed his family home in the occupied West Bank village of Kobar, warning him not to celebrate his son's release and assaulting him, he said.

"They entered after midnight, smashed everything, took me into a side room and beat me before leaving," Barghouti told AFP.

"I was taken to the hospital, where they found that I had a broken rib."

Israeli forces conducted several raids on the family homes of prisoners about to be released, according to the Palestinian Prisoners' Club advocacy group.

When asked by AFP about about Barghouti's allegations and the raid in Kobar village, the military said it was "not aware of such an incident involving violence during the forces' activity in the area overnight as claimed".

Earlier the military had said in a statement it "conveyed messages that celebrations and........

© Al Monitor