The rented apartment where he lived for many years on top of an old building at Rothschild Boulevard in downtown Tel Aviv was a well-known rendezvous for political meetings.

[citation needed] In February 2005, Barakeh was threatened by Kahanist activist (and now-outlawed Kach party leader) Baruch Marzel over his pivotal support for Ariel Sharon's evacuation compensation bill, a move that paved the way for Israel's unilateral disengagement from the Gaza Strip and northern West Bank.

[citation needed] In a letter, Marzel wrote to Barakeh: "the evacuation bill was passed with your backing, and now it is only a matter of time before it is implemented on other sectors of society, including you and your friends."

His inclusion in the trip was opposed by two right-wing Israeli legislators led by Danny Danon, who claimed he would use the visit to attack Israel, and who lobbied unsuccessfully to have Barakeh barred from the commemoration.

"[9] He was re-elected for a fifth term in 2013, but prior to the 2015 elections, he announced that he was retiring from politics, and was given the symbolic 120th place on the Joint List,[10] an alliance of Hadash and the main Arab parties.