I have made the case over and over that Prime Minister Netanyahu must not strike a deal with Hamas that requires Israel to withdraw from the conflict before we have completed our military goals. We must remain mindful of the Hamas pledge to attack us again and again – and to ensure that they are not in a position to do so. The cost in human lives were we to strike a deal prematurely would be far greater than the number of lives of hostages currently at risk in Gaza.
This is not to say – and I have emphasized this again and again as well – that we who are opposed to such a deal are without compassion for the suffering of the hostages and their families. This is absolutely not the case.
In fact, there are people who have relatives being held hostage who are also opposed to a deal. Not because they do not care about their captive relatives, but because they understand the cost to the nation of a premature deal. Many of these relatives belong to Forum Tikva, founded by Tzvika Mor, whose son Eitan is held by Hamas.
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My intention here is to move past the very central argument of making certain that Hamas cannot attack again to look at yet another very important reason why we must take extraordinary caution in striking a deal with Hamas. I am remiss in not having emphasized this sufficiently in the past.
And I implore you to share this broadly now.
Nadav Shragai, author, journalist and commentator, has just put out a piece in Israel Hayom – “Trading ‘blood for blood’ – the unspoken cost of prisoner exchange deals” – from which I will cite here extensively (emphasis added). He makes a very powerful case.
“A chilling list has recently come to light, casting a long shadow over ongoing discussions. This isn’t a roster of hostages, but rather a catalog of murdered victims. It contains several columns: the first lists hundreds of bereaved families who lost loved ones to acts of terror; the second details the names of those murdered; the third specifies familial connection – fathers, mothers, siblings, grandparents, in-laws, spouses. Entire worlds, once vibrant, are now lost forever. A closer examination reveals that these attacks span several decades. Almost every goodwill gesture or deal involving the release of terrorists has led to further bloodshed. Some attacks were carried out by the very individuals who had been freed.
“This list was presented to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in February, accompanied by a letter from families opposing the release of their loved ones’ killers. Anyone losing sleep over the fate of the hostages – and rightfully so – should be equally troubled by this grim catalog. They should be tormented to at least the same degree. But there’s a problem: Likely, this list and others like it have never reached the wider public. The media, generally, has not made an effort to amplify and publicize them, as it does – and rightly so – with lists of hostages.
“This is an unfair game, rigged from the start. We are inundated 24/7 with stories of the hostages, their distress, and their suffering. Yet simultaneously, there is no real discussion about the implications of the price demanded for their rescue. The price isn’t just strategic withdrawals from crucial areas like the Philadelphi and Netzarim corridors. It also means freeing hundreds, possibly thousands, of convicted killers and terrorists – some of whom are likely to resume their violent activities.
“We’ve seen this pattern before – with the 2011 Gilad Shalit prisoner exchange deal and before we disengaged from Gaza, as well as before the Oslo Accords. Hadas Mizrahi, whose husband Baruch was killed and who was herself gravely wounded in a Passover Eve attack about a decade ago, shared her perspective with me this week. The attacker…had been freed as part of the Shalit deal. She explained that trading hostages for convicted terrorists, knowing full well that many will return to violence, is essentially swapping one set of victims for another. ‘It’s blood for blood,’ she said.”
Here we see Hadas Mizrahi at the funeral of her husband.
Credit: Yonaton Sindel
It happens that I vividly remember that attack. It was shortly before the beginning of Pesach and the Mizrahi family was on the way to a seder. A seder! And the family was blown apart. My pain for them was every bit as deep as what I feel for hostages now. With that pain was anger, that this could have happened.
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Danny Gonen was also killed by a terrorist released in the Shalit deal. Observed his mother: “The difference between the hostages and the next generation of victims who will be murdered by those released in the upcoming deal is that the hostages have faces and names – while the future victims remain unknown. On the other hand, the previous generation of victims, murdered by those released in previous deals, have both faces and names.”
Malachy Rosenfeld was killed in an attack that was orchestrated by yet another terrorist who had been freed in the Shalit deal.
“Malachy’s father, Eliezer, has a stark demand for the prime minister: release terrorists only if it’s impossible to rescue the hostages through military action, and only if Israel commits to hunting down these released terrorists afterward…
“One could fill pages with the suffering of the murdered, the wounded, and the families whose lives were forever changed by released terrorists. The question that now demands an answer is how the media, which prides itself on journalistic integrity, allows itself to ignore such a crucial aspect of the nightmare we’re currently living through.
“Many of the released terrorists roamed for years in Gaza, Turkey, Jordan, and the West Bank. They perpetrated terror, led operations, aided attacks, and were deeply involved in terrorist activities. The entire Hamas command structure that planned the Oct. 7 massacre, led by Yahya Sinwar, was notably composed of terrorists released as part of the Shalit deal.
Dr. David Applebaum and his daughter Nava were murdered by a released terrorist as they sat together in a café the evening before Nava’s wedding.
I think everyone remembers that horror. People who had come from abroad for the wedding attended the funerals instead. I remember vividly because the café where they sat was just blocks from my apartment, and when I heard the horrendous explosion, I knew. I knew there had been an attack.
Everyone also remembers the three teenage boys from Gush Etzion – Eyal Yifrach, Gilad Shaar and Naftali Fraenkel – who were kidnapped and then murdered in 2014. It was a released terrorist who planned this horror, as well.
“…Since 1985, Israel has released thousands of terrorists as part of deals, gestures of goodwill, or political frameworks. About half of them returned to terrorism. Hundreds were killed or injured by these terrorists, even before the Oct. 7 massacre.
“…Yoram Cohen, the former head of Shin Bet, along with other security officials, backed the Shalit deal, confident that Israel could handle the fallout. The steep cost, culminating in the recent massacre, has proven them tragically mistaken. Now, as security chiefs unanimously endorse another deal, shouldn’t we be challenging them? Asking repeatedly, ‘Perhaps you are mistaken again?’ Last time, they thought the price was manageable. Instead, we paid in rivers of blood.
“…Back in 2011, I was one of the few voices in Israeli media opposing the Shalit deal, and I caught flak from some colleagues for it. The media landscape was overwhelmingly in favor of Shalit’s return at any price. The government, too, gave in to a well-orchestrated wave of public emotion that drove one-sided coverage and left no room for a balanced public debate on the deal’s implications. We’re seeing the same pattern unfold now.
“We’re facing a new reality now – a far larger and more complex hostage crisis involving civilians who were left defenseless. This abandonment will likely force us into making painful concessions. But it’s unthinkable that the public should be kept in the dark about what these compromises really mean. We can’t shy away from the hellish dilemma of trading ‘blood for blood,’ as Hadas Mizrahi put it – essentially swapping the lives of hostages for potential future victims, and we can’t afford to ignore the lessons of the past.”
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There have been accusations against Prime Minister Netanyahu with regard to his reluctance to strike a deal with Hamas. Some of the members of the families of the hostages claim that he is concerned only with his career and avoiding an election. I believe this is an exceedingly unfair charge. I think that he is sincere in his conviction that we must bring Hamas to its knees so as to avoid having to strike a deal with disastrous consequences.
I don’t think a deal is going to happen now and I will follow with more on this soon. According to the Prime Minister’s Office yesterday evening, Hamas has added 29 new conditions for a deal.
Israel is holding out for retaining control of the Philadelphi Corridor, having the right to resume fighting after a ceasefire to allow release of hostages – with a maximum of live hostages and a list provided in advance of who will be released, and preventing the movement of armed hostages to the north of Gaza.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/393809
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What particularly infuriates me – but there is so much these days that is infuriating – is a recent statement by Secretary of State Blinken:
“US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and the Foreign Ministers of Australia, India, and Japan released a joint statement today (Sunday) calling for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas and the establishment of a Palestinian state following a meeting of The Quad, a diplomatic network of the four nations.” (Emphasis added)
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/393798
Realize that the call for a ceasefire at this time is undoubtedly motivated in part by recognition that if Israel were to stop fighting Hamas this might mollify Hezbollah and reduce the possibility of all out war with Israel.
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But a call for a Palestinian state now? “We remain committed to a sovereign, viable and independent Palestinian state…as part of a two-state solution that enables both Israelis and Palestinians to live in a just, lasting, and secure peace. Any unilateral actions that undermine the prospect of a two-state solution, including Israeli expansion of settlements and violent extremism on all sides, must end.”
This is Blinken’s mantra, unchanging no matter the circumstances. But it is outrageous now in light of the recent agreement between Fatah (the controlling party of the PA) and Hamas in China:
This deal may fail as other Fatah-Hamas deals have. But how does Blinken have the unmitigated gall to ignore this, to not call the PA on this, and to suggest that establishment of a Palestinian state and a “two-state solution” would be a good move?
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Keep praying to Heaven for Israel. Pray that the tears might be lifted from our hearts.
Pray for the strength and wisdom of our leaders, for the safety of our soldiers, and for the rescue of our hostages.
Pray in a spirit of hope.
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©Arlene Kushner. This material is produced by independent journalist Arlene Kushner. Permission is granted for it to be reproduced only with proper attribution.
