Shalom all,

First Hostages Returned:

There is an appointed time for everything. And there is a time for every matter under heaven—[including] a time to weep and a time to rejoice (Ecclesiastes 3:1, 4). 

All of the news media were occupied today and this evening with the return of the some of the hostages held by the terrorist organization, Hamas. The day began with a ceasefire at 07:00 Israel time, followed 15 minutes later by sirens blasting in one of the border communities surrounding the Gaza Strip. For the moment, it appeared that Hamas was back to its old tricks, violating ceasefire agreements before the ink was even dry. But, Israel wisely did not over-react and, with the exception of that incident, the remainder of the day was without further military confrontation. 

And then the late afternoon arrived. The nation seemed to hold its breath, the second time in two days, in  anticipation of the release of some of the hostages. And then the moment arrived that it was confirmed that 13 hostages were turned over to the International Red Cross and were beginning their journey back to Israel. For some, here were tears of joy over the release of the hostages, while for others, tears of sorrow revealed the painful reality that their loved ones are not among those released and that the likelihood is that close to 80% of the hostages will remain under the control of Hamas, “Palestinian” Islamic Jihad and a rag-tag group of unidentified residents of Gaza, who joined the terrorists in their assault on the communities surrounding the Gaza enclave.

The released hostages included 4 children, ranging in age from 2 to 9 years. The rest were women of varying ages, ranging from 34 to 85. After they arrived back in Israel and their identities were verified, they were taken to the Hatzerim air base before being transported by helicopter to hospitals for evaluation of their physical condition, where their families were waiting for them. Then, the Israeli authorities will inquire regarding events relating to their capture and retention by Hamas, before they will be released and be able to return home. An additional 11 Thai and Philippine nationals were also released through a separate deal worked out by the Egyptian government.

The sun had already set when the hostages exited from ambulances. Most were able to walk without assistance, but some did not to be held while entering the building where their identities would be verified.
It is difficult not to rejoice with those 13 released hostages and their families. For them, the fear and anguish that they experienced during almost 50 days was coming to an end. A period of readjustment will await the hostages, as some will undoubtedly need help to overcome what they went through, what they saw and heard, and what they, themselves, experienced. But, at least they’re back.

At the same time, we continue to weep with those who weep – with those who remain as hostages, for a day, two days or three, when the 4-day ceasefire and hostage exchange is over. And, with those whose nightmare will continue beyond those four days. As noted by IDF Spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari: “We must not forget that each and every one of those returning home still has a family member or relative who was murdered or is in captivity in Gaza. It is a great sadness mixed with joy and excitement.” 

As mentioned at the outset, all of the major media reported on the release and exchange of the Israeli hostages for the “Palestinian” prisoners. Thirty-nine “Palestinian” women and minors held in Israeli prisons were released as part of the hostage release deal – 24 women and 15 teenage boys. While none of them was convicted of murder, most were convicted of carrying out attacks against Israeli security forces and civilians. Six of them were residents of East Jerusalem, while the rest were residents of Judea and Samaria (= “the West Bank”). As the Israeli hostages were being transported to the Hazerim air base, one of the reporters for a major news station here expressed the obvious concern: Those returning to East Jerusalem can carry on their lives any way they choose. He added that, nothing will prevent one of released prisoners returning to East Jerusalem from getting up tomorrow morning and attempt to commit another terrorist act against Israelis or Israeli forces. The entire ceasefire/hostage release deal reveals the stark contrast between the release of terrorists, who attempted to kill and injure individuals and multitudes, and the release of women and children, none of whom were involved in criminal activity against civilians living in Gaza. Other news media reporting on the ceasefire and hostage release were: The Jerusalem Post , I24 News , Haaretz , CNN , and even the BBC , just to name a few.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi is callinig for the establishment of a demilitarized “Palestinian” state. Spain has already said that a temporary ceasefire is not enough, there must be a permanent ceasefire. Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Union, said that rising violence by extremists in the “Israeli-occupied West Bank” needs to end. She said that “a peaceful co-existence is only possible with the two-state solution”. The pressure on Israel will increase as the ceasefire draws to an end. More countries will urge Israel NOT to resume its military activities in Gaza, while others will pursue diplomatic pressure on Israel to allow for a two-state solution to the ongoing Israel-“Palestinian” war. Neither of those options are realistic.It should be pointed out that not everyone was in agreement with the ceasefire and hostage/prisoner exchange. Jonathan Pollard, who spent about 30 years in a Federal prison in the U.S. for spying for Israel in the 1980s, called the present ceasefire/hostage release deal with Hamas, called the deal a “monstrous blunder”. He referred to the pressure on Israel to reach a deal with the terrorist organization, which included, among other things, public protests organized by relatives of the hostages. In his opinion, when Israel declared war against Hamas, the government should have also declared a national emergency and suspended the right to protest during the continuation of the war. He added that the families should have been told:

“You will not interfere in our management of this war. You will not be used by the international community or by our own leftists who managed the Shalit deal as a weapon against us. If that means imprisoning to silence certain members of the hostage families then so be it.”  Difficult times, difficult decisions. In Pollard’s opinion, this deal will be the beginning of the end of this war against Hamas, as Israel will face tremendous pressure, notably from the Biden administration, not to resume fighting after the ceasefire period ends.

It has been said that “War is hell.” No government is perfect and Israel has certainly made mistakes. In my opinion, this deal is one of them. It was entered into because of “internal pressure”. Israel’s gains on the battle field caused Hamas to change its terms for the release of the hostages many times, each time its terms were less demanding. We could have pressed on militarily and significantly increased the pressure on the Hamas leadership. The world community is more concerned about the civilians in the Gaza Strip than Hamas, who would be willing to sacrifice all of Gaza’s civilians for the sake of gaining victory over Israel, at least from a public relations point of view. External pressure was also placed on Israel to fight Hamas, but at the same time ensure that civilians in Gaza were not harmed in the process. Israel should have simply responded that if the world was so concerned about the lives of civilians in Gaza, then the best way to protect them would be for the nations of the world to pressure Hamas to surrender.

The hostages are Israel’s soft underbelly. Hamas and Islamic Jihad are fleeing from Israel on the battlefield, yet they dictated terms for the release of the hostages. The taking of women and children as hostages is just one of the many war crimes committed by those two terrorist organizations. Yet, when the world did not clamor to bring their leadership to the International Criminal Court in The Hague, they brazenly dictated terms to Israel. The leaders of these terrorist organizations hide in tunnels or live in luxury hotels in other countries. Still, they dictated terms to Israel for the release of the hostages. The moment we agreed to sit down at the bargaining table with terrorist organizations, whose agenda includes the destruction of the State of Israel, the killing of Jews or the subjection of Jews to Islam, the handwriting was on the wall. We would allow, and did allow, those organizations to dictate the terms for the release of the hostages. The IDF successfully flexed its muscles and the government made bold promises at the outset of the war not to agree to a ceasefire without the return of all of the hostages. Notwithstanding the substantial successes of the IDF since the ground offensive began, the terrorist organizations nevertheless called the government’s bluff and dangled the terrorists in front of us like a carrot in front of a horse. We compromised on our goals of the war, giving blood-thirty terrorists a much-desired lull in the fighting. And in the process, we even allowed the terrorists to decide which hostages would be released.

We do rejoice over the release of some of the hostages, because that is the right thing to do. But, we weep over the decision that will leave most of the hostages in the hands of terrorists, who will make greater demands for their release, eventually returning to their original demand for the release of all “Palestinians” held in Israeli prisons, many of whom have “blood on their hands”. There will be more home-grown demonstrations that will pressure the government to give the enemy whatever it wants to get the rest of the hostages released, if, in fact, a release of ALL of the hostages is even possible. Outside pressures will now seek to bring about a permanent ceasefire. If we continue to yield to both internal and external pressures, we will end up not accomplishing either of the two main goals that we set at the outset of the war – elimination of the threat of Hamas and the “Palestinian” Islamic Jihad and the return of all of the hostages. The decision for the benefit of a few was made at the expense of the benefit of the nation. It’s not too late to get back on track. A smooth stone in a sling in the hand of faith can defeat the Goliath of Jihad.

“You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.” (1 Samuel 17:45)

Bless, be blessed and be a blessing.
Marvin