"Israeli soldier Gilad Schalit freed in swap for 1,000 prisoners" Headline
We should all be grateful that Gilad Schalit has returned safely to his home and family; but his short-term security will be all be cut short as the Palestinians mobilize all the more to push for statehood, which will only undermine Israel's precarious statehood.
Palestinian prisoners flashing "V" for Victory signs, indeed. This prisoner swap is a lose-lose situation for everybody, Israeli and Arab. Peace it any cost is not peace. Once again, Israel has suffered another setback in order to placate pacifists at home and peaceniks abroad. There were no concessions from Palestinian authorities to respect the individual rights of the Arabs living in Gaza and the West Bank. The brief euphoria of one Israeli soldier returned will only cast a further spell of destruction over the Jewish State.
Does the Middle East celebrate with the thousands of Palestinians cheering the release of horde of law breakers and civil rights violators? The region is already shivering with political unrest, from Morocco to Iran, and the Israelis have added to this and their own misery by releasing enemy combatants to fight again.
President Obama's dithering on Israeli-Palestinian talks has emboldened the terrorists, and the Arab state who lauded his grand mea culpa in 2009 now denounce him for his open about face September 21, when he blocked Palestinian Statehood. Now Bibi is shifting ground, responding to parochial political pressure while still ignoring the big picture. Netanyahu claims to understand the pain of his countrymen, appalled to see a blank-check reprieve tendered to Palestinian marauders. He justifies the move to release one thousand for one because of Israel's longstanding policy to protect every soldier fighting for the Jewish State. Yet those very soldiers have committed their lives to defending their country. It is a gross miscalculation on the part of the Israeli Government to sacrifice legality and integrity to save one soldier.
Furthermore, it is not enough to charge the released prisoners "not to act up again" This one-sided exchange is a perversion of justice that will come back to haunt the Netanyahu government. Hamas militant leader Yehia Sinwar has already called on the Palestinians to kidnap more Israeli soldiers. So much for high hopes in diplomacy.
Rather than abjuring his people to respect the rights and integrity of Israel, Abbas lauded the prisoners, declaring: "We thank God for your return and your safety. You are freedom fighters and holy warriors for the sake of God and the homeland."
Mr. Abbas is a shameful demagogue. Palestinian terrorists are not heroes, nor are they freedom fighters. They are disgraceful dregs of humanity have hindered the cause of liberty for the Arabs and Israel. Suicide bomber who kill innocent civilians are not freedom fighters. An Arab killing a Jew in the name of political expediency or Islamic jihad is nothing but a marauding evil, malevolence which has not place in a civilized world.
One Israeli soldier returned home. In return, Israel released 1,000 Palestinian prisoners. "Lopsided" does not begin to characterize this injustice. When in history has a nation-state in ongoing conflicts to protect itself ever expected itself to hand over its enemies intact to the opposing side? This is lunacy.
I have a few other words to express my reaction: Outrageous! Heinous! Wicked Appeasement!
How many of those Palestinian prisoners will turn back around and assault the Jewish State? How many more Israeli soldiers and civilians have to die? Why does the Israeli government insist on giving up far more than the Palestinian terrorists for peace?