Free Gilad Shalit

French Minister Attacked by Gaza Mob

2011-01-21T23:40:00.001+11:00

French Foreign Minister Michele Alliot-Marie was attacked by a mob in Gaza on Friday morning. Her attackers were enraged over statements she had allegedly made the day before supporting human rights for kidnapped Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.

Alliot-Marie was mobbed as she entered Gaza, with a crowd surrounding her car, pounding on its windows, and throwing shoes at the vehicle. One person jumped on the car. Two children were pushed in front of the first car in Alliot-Marie's convoy, forcing the convoy to a stop while the attack continued.

One sign at the rally had a picture of Alliot-Marie with a red cross over her face. Others called on the foreign minister to leave Gaza.

Hamas police eventually stopped the furious protest and allowed the convoy to continue. Hamas leaders expressed sympathy with the rioters, saying Alliot-Marie's comments regarding Shalit reflected a “total bias toward Israel.”

Alliot-Marie was not hurt in the attack.

She had met Thursday with the parents of Gilad Shalit. The kidnapped soldier, who Hamas claims to have in custody, holds French citizenship. Alliot-Marie assured his parents that “France has not forgotten Shalit,” and said she would insist that the European Union ask Hamas to allow Red Cross representatives to visit Shalit, as required by international law.

According to AFP, trying to 'justify' the incident, the Gaza mob may have mistakenly believed that Alliot-Marie termed Shalit's captivity a “war crime.”

Shalit's father Noam had called on France to push the EU to condemn the kidnapping as a war crime, and his statement was wrongly attributed to Alliot-Marie on Israel Radio's Arabic-language website, an AFP reporter said. This has not been corroborated.

[source]

Gilad Shalit Video

2010-10-08T23:07:00.001+11:00

I saw this at The Muqata. Definitely worth watching:

Cross posted here.

Today Is The Day: Tweet4Shalit! #GiladShalit

2009-08-26T18:25:00.002+10:00

On August 28th, Gilad Shalit will celebrate his 23rd birthday. However, instead of celebrating his birthday with family and friends, Gilad Shalit will be 'celebrating' his birthday in terrorist captivity in Gaza, courtesy of the terrorist group Hamas.

In order to raise awareness of Gilad Shalit’s story and to get support for his immediate release, various groups have organized “Tweet4Shalit”, which will take place from Wednesday, August 26th at midnight until Thursday, August 27th.

The goal is to make “Tweet4Shalit” into an event where thousands of people will tweet the hashtag #GiladShalit on Twitter and make Gilad a top 10 Twitter “Trending Topic.”

For more information about “Tweet4Shalit,” click here.

Please take part in this important event.

Free: Gilad Shalit
: Gilad Shalit * Gilad and Israel * Gilad * Jewish Soldier and Gilad * Kidnapped Soldier * Justice * Hostage * Kidnapped Israeli * Gilad Shalit * IDF* Terrorism* Jewish * Hamas * Jew

August 26: Tweet4Shalit Twitter Campaign!

2009-08-14T09:36:00.002+10:00

From the Tweet4Shalit Twitter Campaign! Facebook page:

On August 28th, 2009, kidnapped Israeli Defense Force soldier Gilad Shalit will celebrate his 23rd birthday.

But for the fourth year in a row, it appears he will most likely celebrate this important milestone far away from his home in Israel.

Shalit was kidnapped by Hamas in the summer of 2006 and has remained in captivity since.

Negotiations for his release are ongoing.

‘Tweet4Shalit’ is a virtual grassroots movement inspired by the struggle Gilad Shalit must endure daily as a prisoner of war and as a victim of Islamic extremism.

‘Tweet4Shalit’ is a 24 hour Twitter event in which thousands of supporters will sign onto Twitter to tweet the hashtag ‘#GiladShalit’ with the goal of making Gilad a top ten Twitter ‘Trending Topic’ two days before his birth (recognizing that his actual birthday occurs on Shabbos).

'Tweet4Shalit' is a single-issue campaign only to raise awareness and is not a political action group.

Social networking is a way to inspire change and raise awareness and we plan to do just that. We invite everyone, everywhere to spread the word about ‘Tweet4Shalit’ and join us on Twitter, all day (and all night) on August 26th, 2009 (East Coast Time, U.S.A.)

For more information, please visit the Facebook event website for this campaign:
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=245983090453

The following individuals and organizations are working in support of this project:

Jewish Internet Defense Force
http://www.thejidf.org/

Radical Commentary
http://radicalcommentary.blogspot.com/

David Saranga and the Israeli Consulate in New York
http://www.israelfm.org/

Z-Street
http://ziostreet.wordpress.com/

Jewlicious
http://www.jewlicious.com/

International Civil Liberties Alliance
http://www.libertiesalliance.org/

See also Arutz7 article: Happy Birthday for Gilad Shalit?

by Daled Amos

Young Israelis sail for Shalit

2009-07-17T13:00:00.004+10:00

Some 2,000 youths from kibbutzim throughout country, joined by100 settlers, build rafts using rope, barrels, sheets and sail together on Sea of Galilee with one demand: Bring us information on Gilad, only then deal with question of price.

Some 2,000 young kibbutz members sailed the waters of the Kinneret Thursday afternoon on homemade rafts in a bid to raise awareness on the status of kidnapped Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.
The kibbutz youth worked throughout the past few days to build some 75 rafts out of rope, planks, and barrels. They painted colorful slogans in support of Gilad Shalit on the rafts' sails, such as: "Give us information about Gilad, if he is alive or dead" and "No one knows his fate and if he needs medication." They pushed their homemade rafts into the water Thursday and sailed across the Kinneret for about four hours.

"We call upon the government of Israel, Hamas, and the Red Cross – Bring us information on Gilad. Only then address the question of price," said Yoel Marshak from the Kibbutz Movement.

"We think that even before the question of price is raised, it is critical to receive information on Gilad Shalit as soon as possible. Three years have passed during which no one knows his status, where he is being held, in what conditions, and if he is alive or dead," said Marshak.

"The kibbutz youth proved today that only teamwork can overcome the power of nature," Marshak said. He added that each raft required the work of about 25 youngsters.

Some 100 settler youths from Alon Moreh, Yitzhar, and Itamar joined in the building effort Wednesday night. The two groups also held an open discussion on the topic: "Where is the country headed?"

"We explained to them that we seek a solid Jewish majority in the State of Israel without controlling a foreign nation. They explained that they seek to live on the greater Land of Israel," Marshek said.

Gilad Shalit was kidnapped to the Gaza Strip 1,117 days ago.

By: Sharon Roffe-Ofir

Source: YNet News

The Israeli Media And Gilad Shalit

2009-03-23T14:58:00.001+11:00

Ruthie Blum Leibowitz takes on the uneviable task of confronting the Israeli media in its campaign to push for the government to work for Gilad Shalit's release "at any cost". The problem is what that campaign is doing to the opposing view:

the media's campaign has been so comprehensive that all other voices are virtually drowned out. And when some do manage to make a dent, they are not silenced, but rather amplified as right-wing fanatical or - worse - unfeeling.

This puts any pundit or politician who disagrees on the defensive. Even those who try to point out that Hamas is also watching Israeli broadcasts, which only serve to strengthen its sense that it need not soften its bargaining position even one iota, have to preface their statements by assuring everybody that, of course, they, too, want to see Gilad home as soon as possible. Even those who attempt to suggest that releasing hundreds of the worst terrorists who are sure to strike again, both by slaughtering innocent Israelis and by kidnapping additional ones for future trades, are forced first to reiterate that they also would be acting as the Schalit family has been if it were their own child in captivity.

THE PURPOSE of this kind of emotional blackmail and manipulation on the part of the media is to award them a monopoly on goodness. As with the desire for "peace," they behave as though they have cornered the market on wanting to rescue Schalit - while the rest of us would prefer war and embrace heartlessness. This is as preposterous as it is dangerous - the former because everybody in this country wants both peace and Schalit's safe return, and the latter because it leads to confusion about who the real culprit is. When Prime Minister Ehud Olmert receives more criticism from the Hebrew press about Schalit's predicament than Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh, it's time for it to undergo some serious scrutiny and sorely needed soul-searching.[emphasis added]

Read the whole thing.

Then again, Hamas in general is getting a free ride on the issue of Gilad Shalit as well--from bother the West in general and the media & humanitarian groups in particular.

[Hat tip: Jennifer Rubin]

Gilad Shalit--At Any Price?

2009-03-13T22:05:00.003+11:00

When I was first learning about life in Israel, over forty years ago, people talked about how one is expected to bargain. Never pay the first price offered. Pay as little as possible. Walk away from the shop, and they'll call you back with a better and yet better price. It was quite a switch from the very "proper" and inflexible America in the mid-1960's.

Israelis seem to have lost the knack. They're (we're) playing all these negotiations like total patsies, total fools.

We've given away our precious Land for nothing--Disengagement or a smile and Nobel Peace Prize--Menachem Begin's Camp David.

Instead of simply refusing all aid to our enemies and Red Cross visits to the terrorist/enemy Arabs we've captured until our soldiers are returned--alive or dead, we keep offering to free more and more terrorists.

Gilad Shalit's family are media darlings like the religious parents of our soldiers captured in Lebanon could never be.

Yes, Gilad Shalit must be freed, must be returned home to Israel, but what happened to the master Israeli bargainers of old? Maybe we should send one of the veteran stall owners from Machene Yehuda to negotiate. I'm sure he wouldn't do any worse than our politicians, diplomats and media have done.

The Shalit manipulation

2009-03-13T20:53:00.000+11:00

The Israeli MSM is currently engaged in a shameless campaign to free Gil'ad Shalit at any price.

Here's a courageous article from Yaron Dekel, Channel 1’s political commentator, where he takes the media to task. A snippet:

They forgot the victims, and the counter protest tent of those opposed to a deal was dismantled within 24 hours.

It’s also difficult to find reports about the ramifications of this deal. Reports that not only ask what the terrorists could do once they are be released, but also a wider discussion about the impact this deal will have on IDF operations in the future, on the combat doctrine and efforts to sacrifice lives rather than fall into captivity, and about the issue of capturing terrorists alive in order to try them in Israel, knowing that the verdict is temporary until the next abduction.

The media has chosen to serve the Shalit family and not the public interest. But good journalism is tested in difficult times, not easy times.

It’s tested in its ability to stimulate a debate, to protest, to fuel an argument, raise doubts and create cracks in a monolithic public opinion. The same goes for peace times as in times of war. Journalism has a decisive role to play in a democratic society. Its role is not to move hearts.

(Cross posted on Cosmic X in Jerusalem)

Quote of the Day

2009-02-18T02:59:00.001+11:00

With regards to releasing terrorists

With regards to releasing terrorists to obtain the release of Gilad Shalit:

Rami Igra, former head of the Mossad's captive and MIA department who also attended the meeting, spoke of past prisoner exchange deals Israel has agreed to: "We need to keep a moral view for the long run. We have to envision those who may be killed because of the release to terrorists and not just the person held in Gaza right now."

Cross posted here.

Gilad Shalit--Going On 900 Days

2008-12-12T15:32:00.000+11:00

HonestReporting's blog Backspin Media notes:

The day after the world celebrated the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights with pomp and hot air, Israelis mark Gilad Shalit's 900th day in captivity.
At least the Red Cross noticed.

The Red Cross site explains what the Red Cross has done so far and is trying to do--which basically boils down to trying to see Gilad Shalit and speak to him in private:

We are pursuing dialogue with all those concerned, as we believe that is essential for achieving progress. We have to talk to those who hold a person's fate in their hands in order to be able to help that person.

The Red Cross is sincere, but still--I thought this was a bit jarring:

There are limits to what we can do and to what international humanitarian law entitles us to do when it comes to visiting people in detention or to finding out what happened to people who go missing in an armed conflict. [emphasis added]

Neither of these 2 descriptions fit the current circumstances. Shalit is neither in detention nor did he go missing. He was kidnapped by terrorists. Despite the Red Cross's best motives, their efforts thus far seem to have done nothing more than to legitimize Hamas and what they have done by equating their actions with those of a party to an armed conflict.

If indeed the situation was one of armed conflict, why is Israel put under constant pressure to act as if there was no such conflict and open up its borders and indiscriminately allow unfettered access to Palestinian Arabs?

Not surprisingly, the Red Cross refuses to call Hamas by what they are and is reduced to
"pursuing dialogue."

Debate Over Gilad Shalit Continues

2008-10-28T16:39:00.003+11:00

Shmuel Rosner has a post on Contentions about the ongoing debate in Israel about Gilad Shalit--about what the Israeli public itself can do:

Simply put: there are those who believe that Israelis should have demonstrations and rallies demanding the release of Schalit, captured by a Hamas faction in Gaza three years ago. And there are those saying that a public outcry makes it more difficult for the government to deal successfully with this delicate topic.

Deputy Defense Minister Matan Vilnai and Ehud Barak have come out saying that public rallies will only encourage Hamas to raise their demands in exchange for Shalit's release. On the other hand, former Shin-Bet head Ami Ayalon spoke at one of those rallies, emphasizing the importance of telling the government what they think and that the same government that sent Shalit into battle must also bring him own.

In the aftermath of the Samir Kuntar deal, the situation is even more delicate.

Rosner concludes:

Strategic considerations aside, the public is sick and tired of hearing excuses as to why Shalit is still in Gaza. Since it has no way of demonstrating effectively against Hamas, it goes after the Israeli government. Problematic–but also encouraging, because means that Israelis still care for the soldiers they send to battle, that there’s still a sense of responsibility for their fate.

The question now is how to act responsibly.

A poem for Gilad Shalit

2008-08-25T21:54:00.001+10:00

Here is a poem I wrote for Gilad:

Gilad, please don't cry tonight

The heart of a forlorn nation

beats inside your chest

I wait with you to see the light

while brothers are laid to rest

I just want to see your face again

I only dream to see you smile

What I'd give to enter that lion's den

and just hold your hand a while

Thanks,

Anat Sivan, Tel Aviv

IDF Warns of Increased Alerts of Plans to Abduct Soldiers

2008-08-25T12:25:00.000+10:00

Via JPost:

Security forces are warning of increased alerts on terrorist groups’ plans to kidnap soldiers, Channel 2 reported Thursday.

IDF military police have established a special team that carries out mock abductions, and in the past week alone arrested 25 soldiers caught hitchhiking, in violation of military orders.

Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi has said in internal meetings that he would rather explain to the soldiers’ parents why their children were in jail than explain why they had fallen captive.

Crossposted on Smooth Stone

Fake recording of Gilad Schalit

2008-08-24T20:05:00.003+10:00

The Jerusalem post has published an article Fake Schalit tape circulated, which is a mock recording of Gilad Schalit talking.
When you consider the content of the tape reported by JPost it apparently states;

"I am the kidnapped soldier Gilad, son of Aviva and Noam Schalit. You are invited to celebrate with me the third anniversary of my captivity by Hamas, in the last place where I was still a free man."

It soon becomes clear the tape is not authentic.
The Jerusalem Post article in full is here:
Fake Schalit tape circulated

Gilad Shalit’s Book Now on YouTube

2008-06-24T13:14:00.002+10:00

From the IsRealli blog:

Gilad Shalit’s book, When the Shark and the Fish First Met, now appears on YouTube to mark two years since he was kidnapped.

The Consulate General of Israel filmed five fifth-grade students from New York [Bronx Middle School] reading the story that Shalit wrote when he, too, was eleven years old. “Gilad was a boy our age when he wrote this story; if only we could write something so significant at this age. Today, no one knows where he is and he probably misses his parents,” said one of the students. “If the shark and fish can make peace, why can’t people?”

Click here to download (PDF) information about Shalit and the book.

You can also download the story in Hebrew and in translation here.

The Calm Before The Storm: The Israeli Consulate On The Truce

2008-06-21T03:01:00.001+10:00

From an email from the Israeli Consulate in NY.

All very matter-of-factly.

I like this part:

Palestinian terrorist organizations must:

o Halt all fire and terrorist activity
o End their buildup of arms
o Cease smuggling from Egypt

In other words: Hamas must give up terrorism.

Isn't that kind of like asking the current Israeli government to ask responsibly?

Details of the "State of Calm" in Gaza
After a protracted period of negotiations between Egypt and representatives of Israel and Hamas, it was announced that a period of calm would be instituted between Israel and the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip beginning at 6:00 A.M. on Thursday, 19 June. Following are some of the major points comprising this agreement:

The institution of "calm" applies only to the Gaza Strip and not to West Bank areas. Thus, while Israel's security forces will refrain from operations in the Gaza Strip, they will continue to undertake necessary operations in the West Bank.
Palestinian terrorist organizations must:
Halt all fire and terrorist activity
End their buildup of arms
Cease smuggling from Egypt
While the above points are effective immediately with the beginning of the "calm," opening the crossings to Gaza will be implemented gradually after successive periods of calm.
After 3 days, Israel will open the Karni and Sufa crossings for basic commodities
One week later, Israel will allow for a larger number of commodities to enter the Gaza Strip, excepting those used for weapons manufacturing
After an additional week, talks will be held about opening the Rafah crossing to Egypt
The freedom of Gilad Shalit, kidnapped two years ago, is an integral part of the "state of calm." According to Foreign Minister Livni, releasing Shalit is a necessary step if Hamas wants to achieve further gains.
Furthermore, Israel will continue to monitor the situation closely to ensure that all parties adhere to their obligations. Hamas will bear responsibility for any terrorist act by any organization and should be prepared to accept the consequences of such actions.

While the State of Israel has every desire to see this "lull" develop into a period of sustained calm, she places primary significance on the safety and security of her citizens. Should the "calm" collapse, Israel will take alternate measures to address the new situation.

Information for this report comes from the Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center.

Better to check out Caroline Glick's Israel's Darkest Week:

The Olmert-Livni-Barak-Yishai government's liquidation sale of Israel's strategic assets opened officially this week. Iran's proxies have pounced on the merchandise.

Read the whole thing.

One concern is the lack of clarity on how Gilad Shalit fits in.

According to the above, Shalit is "integral" to all of this and after receiving concessions, Hamas must release Shalit to get more.

Noah Pollak, however, writes that Olmert:

has agreed to a tahdiyya with Hamas, but notably without the release of Gilad Shalit, which up until this moment had been the central (and non-negotiable) condition of any such agreement.

Likewise, according to YnetNews.com:

"If Gilad Shalit is not released, Rafah crossing does not open," said Senior Defense Ministry Official Amos Gilad during an interview with Ynet on Wednesday night. Gilad is currently representing Israel in talks negotiating the ceasefire with Hamas and the other Gazan terror organizations in Egypt.

Gilad's statement validated an earlier statement made by the kidnapped soldier's father, Noam Shalit, according to which Israel's government had neglected his son during the negotiations of a truce.

But in the same article, Gilad says:

"I think the ceasefire is the only way we may be able to bring about Shalit's release," he said, adding that the issue had been prioritized during his talks with Egyptian Intelligence Chief Omar Suleiman in Cairo on Tuesday.

"During the last discussion we set aside a third of the time allotted to speak about Shalit, and we were adamant in demanding that his release be part of the agreement," Gilad said.

Gilad Shalit may be part of the agreement, but only conditionally. Shalit's release has not been secured. First Hamas gets the recognition it wants and enough goodies so it can brag that just like The Disengagement, once again Hamas 'resistance' has forced Israel's hand. Then Hamas can haggle over releasing Shalit--just as it has till now.

And according to Glick:

The government agreed to the "cease-fire" with Hamas without securing Gilad Schalit's release from captivity. Rather than acknowledge that they have likely signed his death warrant, the government insists that it's not done capitulating. It will begin begging Hamas to accept hundreds of Palestinian murderers jailed in Israeli prisons in exchange for Schalit next Tuesday.

One more reason why the truce is a cruel joke.

by Daled Amos

Despite Report, 'Assume Goldwasser, Regev Alive'

2008-02-17T17:31:00.002+11:00

by Hana Levi Julian

(IsraelNN.com) A report Saturday by the German Der Spiegel magazine that Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is preparing to announce that kidnapped IDF reservists Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev are dead may be premature.A senior political source in Jerusalem quoted by Ynet said “as long as there is no unequivocal information regarding their condition, Israel will continue to engage in negotiations based on the assumption they are alive.”

News of the Der Spiegel report was splayed across Israeli news outlets by Saturday night, with headlines trumpeting the probability of an imminent announcement by the prime minister that Israeli intelligence has concluded the two reservists are dead.

Olmert was in Germany for talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel last week to discuss the matter. Germany has been deeply involved in mediating talks with Hizbullah about Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev, who were kidnapped in July 2006 by the group’s operatives in a cross-border attack that touched off the Second Lebanon War.

Goldwasser’s wife Karnit, who often comments on reports in the news about her husband and his fellow reservist, said she had not received any notification from the Prime Minister’s Office.

“Usually, when there are serious developments, the Prime Minister calls me or the family,” said Goldwasser. “I have not received any new notification from the [PMO] and so I have no intention of commenting on the various reports by foreign media outlets.”
Second Report by German Newspaper that Goldwasser and Regev are Dead
Der Spiegel reported last October in a feature article about the unnamed German official mediating talks between Israel and Hizbullah for the soldiers’ release that both soldiers were dead. The report added that Israeli officials also believe they were killed.

Goldwasser’s wife and Regev’s brother Benny spoke about her husband and his fellow reservist last month in a video hookup with Jewish communities in London, Singapore and Hong. Goldwasser acknowledged that she is preparing for the possibility that Ehud is no longer alive. While not saying he won’t return home at all, she commented that “in the meantime, a year and a half later, I am getting along without Udi.”

References:
Directly from Arutz Sheva:
Israel: Despite Report, 'Assume Goldwasser, Regev Alive'

Free: Gilad Shalit
: Gilad Shalit * Gilad and Israel * Gilad * Jewish Soldier and Gilad * Kidnapped Soldier * Ehud Goldwasser *Eldad Regev * Justice * Hostage * Kidnapped Israeli * Gilad Shalit * IDF* Terrorism* Jewish * Hamas * Jew

A Sign of Life from Gilad Shalit Received by Israel

2008-02-06T15:17:00.000+11:00

(From IsraelNN.com)
Israel has received a sign of life from kidnapped IDF Corporal Gilad Shalit, according to the daily Hebrew newspaper Maariv.

Egyptian officials involved in talks between Israel and the Hamas terrorist organization said the letter was checked and found to be authentic. It was passed to Shalit’s family, said the source.

Shalit was kidnapped in June 2006 by Hamas terrorists, the same organization whose paramilitia operatives one year later wrested control over Gaza from the rival Fatah faction that currently leading the Palestinian Authority.

The sources said the letter intensified efforts to negotiate with Hamas, which has demanded the release of thousands of terrorists, in exchange for Shalit’s freedom. Many of the requested terrorists were directly involved in the murders of Israeli citizens, and have thus been classified as having "blood on their hands."

But Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has decided to relax the standards by which terrorists are categorized as having such bloody hands. Thereby Olmert can broaden the eligibility for release among the thousands of PA terrorists held in Israeli jails, according to the Jerusalem Post.

Olmert met Sunday to discuss his decision with Defense Minister Ehud Barak, Public Security Minister and former head of the General Security Service (Shin Bet) Avi Dichter, former Shin Bet director Ami Ayalon, Environment Minister and former deputy Shin Bet head Gideon Ezra, Vice Premier Chaim Ramon, Justice Minister Daniel Friedmann and Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni.

The current definition of the term includes terrorists who have masterminded, ordered and organized deadly attacks on Israeli citizens as well as those who physically prepared and carried out the attacks.

General Security Services (Shin Bet) director Yuval Diskin vehemently opposed the move. Israel’s representative in talks with the terrorists, Ofer Dekel, is the one who recommended it.

Diskin warned that releasing prisoners with “blood on their hands” would result in increased terrorist attacks, increase Hamas’s standing among PA residents, and thereby weaken Fatah leader and PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas’s control over the population.

A senior government official said that even if Israel made the concession, “The road ahead is still very long. Hamas has high demands to which we have no intention of conceding.”

The State of Israel has so far not agreed to release terrorists classified as having “blood on their hands.”

References:
Israel National News: A Sign of Life from Gilad Shalit recieved by Israel

Bush, Free Your Captive: Jonathan Pollard

2008-01-11T21:09:00.000+11:00

I just took a night stroll through the Kiryat Moshe of Jerusalem and I saw this:

The sign says, "Bush, Free Your Captive".

Under the picture of Islamofascist Haniyeh is the name Gilad Shalit, who is being held captive in Gaza. The names of Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser are under the picture of Nassrallah the war criminal. Under the image of George W. Bush is the name Jonathan Pollard.

I've already stated many times that the continued incarceration of Pollard is a stain on "the land of the free and the home of the brave." Pollard is in jail because he is a Jew, and not because of any crime that he committed. Bush did not put him in jail,but he has the power to set him free. As long as he doesn't, he is in some pretty bad company.

Update:

Deputy Prime Minister and Shas Chairman Eli Yishai, who attended the event, forwarded a letter from Shas spiritual leader the Rabbi Ovadia Yosef to Bush. Yosef asked the president to free jailed Israeli spy Jonathan Pollard.

Yosef's plea was sent along with a letter from Pollard's wife Esther, asking Bush to pardon her husband, who has been incarcerated for 22 years.

Gilad Shalit: When the Shark and The Fish First Met

2007-12-25T17:52:00.000+11:00

From Arutz Sheva:

A short story written by kidnapped Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit at age 11 will be professionally illustrated, published, and released to select bookstores in January. The story is about a fish and shark that become friends despite their parents’ opposition and eventually create peace between their two species.

The story has already been translated into English, Arabic, and other languages, and has inspired an art exhibit in Nahariya. Organizers hope to bring Arabic copies of the story to the Palestinian Authority, and to bring the art exhibit to the central district.

The original story in Hebrew is available online:

The Israeli Illustrators' Association, in coordination with the initiator, "The Edge Gallery" in Nahariya, has decided to take advantage of this story as a way to keep the kidnapped soldiers in the public eye. They have illustrated Gilad's story, each in his own style. Their illustrations will be exhibited in a show, opening at "The Edge Gallery" in Nahariya on November 17, 2007. There is a possibility that this show will continue in other parts of Israel as well.

The parents of Gilad, are inviting Israeli children and you too, to illustrate Gilad's story.

Read "When the Shark and The Fish First Met"--and learn more about the Keren Maor Foundation.

Crossposted at Daled Amos

take advantage of the situation

2007-12-23T21:33:00.000+11:00

The politicians and the IDF have finally done some serious, fairly proactive, attacks to neutralize the Qassam rocket attacks on Sderot and the area. It has met with considerable success. Mainly because the leaders in Gaza are scared for their lives.

This was not a ground op (which is probably necessary anyway) which puts Israeli soldiers at risk. This was targeted attacks on the leadership who are giving the ok to shoot the rockets. As soon as a couple of their leaders were knocked off, the rest ran like scared bunnies and started calling for ceasefires. The call itself is funny, as we only targeted their people because of the Qassam attacks. In other words, stop shooting Qassams, and we stop, automatically, picking off your leaders.

But they were scared, so they called for a ceasefire.

Yet at the same time they call for a ceasefire, they have still been shooting Qassam rockets into Israel. It kind of makes their call for a ceasefire meaningless. They should have stopped shooting and then call for a ceasefire. Then they could say we have stopped, let us now negotiate a ceasefire and if an agreement is not reached, then they should start up again. As it is, their call for a ceasefire is meaningless.

Israel, wisely I think, is refusing to talk to Hamas until Hamas recognizes Israel (though we all know they do talk, as they claim to have been negotiating for Shalit's release). It should keep them scared.

At the same time, I think, Israel should continue going after their leadership and knocking them off, until such an agreement is in place. Keep them scared.

What Israel should really do now, I think, is negotiate a ceasefire with Hamas. but not on Hamas' terms. Not an agreement that says Hamas stops shooting Qassam rockets and Israel stops killing terrorists.
The agreements negotiated should be that Hamas stops shooting Qassam rockets and returns Gilad Shalit to Israel, and Israel stops killing terrorists.

Now that Israel finally has some semblance of an upper-hand on the Gaza situation, we should take advantage of it. They are scared for their lives. Tell them that if they want us to stop shooting at their leaders, they should stop shooting at us and give us back Shalit.

We finally have an advantage. Let's use it.

(cross posted at the Life in Israel blog)

2007-12-14T21:07:00.000+11:00

(cross posted at Life in Israel )

With all this talk of a possible offensive entry by the army into Gaza due to the recent wave of Qassam rocket attacks, I consider the fate of Gilad Shalit.
All indications point to the fact that he is still alive. Going into Gaza now on an offensive will likely create a situation in which Hamas will execute, God forbid, Shalit.

Remember Nachshon Wachsman? The soldier kidnapped by Palestinians. He was held in a rigged building and while Israeli forces broke in to try to free him, the terrorists killed him in full view.

Is that what we want to happen now? Could we not have released Shalit earlier, before it came to necessity of an armed offensive in Gaza? Does the army not think that this will be Shalit's fate?

The price demanded for Shalit was very high. I was against trading so many terrorist for Shalit, and the government was as well. It is horrible to have a soldier in captivity, but when one pays too high a price for his freedom, it encourages more kidnappings.

But since then, we have released about a thousand terrorists anyway. Just as a sign of goodwill. To strengthen Abu Mazen. For free. With nothing in return.

If we were going to release a thousand terrorists, couldn't we have done it to obtain Shalit's release? Especially knowing that there would be a good chance we would need to go into Gaza on the offensive at some point?

Let's hope this scenario does not play out and Shalit comes home safely, but it is very worrying..

Eyal Regev: We must listen to Nasrallah

2007-10-18T19:39:00.000+10:00

Family members of kidnapped reservists Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev expressed hope on Wednesday that Hizbullah chief Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah would hold true to his statements Tuesday that talks on their release were indeed progressing

"I hope that Nasrallah actually goes through with what he promised," Goldwasser's wife, Karnit, told Channel 2.

On Tuesday Nasrallah asserted on Hizbullah's Al-Manar television station that there "are strenuous negotiations."

Despite the fact that Goldwasser was hopeful that he was speaking the truth, she said that "the state of Israel has no idea... no information on Udi and Eldad," and therefore, neither do the families.

Eyal Regev, Eldad's brother, told the news channel that Israel "needs to listen to Nasrallah. He said that there is progress... this statement is very important. We must do all that we can to promote this deal," urged Regev.

In response to reports that Hizbullah provided Israel with precise information as to the fate of Goldwasser and Regev, Karnit told Army Radio that Israel had not received any such information regarding either her husband or Regev.

"There was no information passed on," she said, adding that Ofer Dekel, who handles the negotiations for the government, was keeping her constantly updated and that there was no new information.

The Saudi paper Al-Watan reported earlier Wednesday that Hizbullah gave Israel the information, which if true, would mark the first concrete information Israel has received regarding their fate.

According to Israel Radio, Israeli officials were satisfied with the nature of the information, and in light of the news, those involved in negotiations with Hizbullah have reportedly decided to swap nine Lebanese prisoners - as well as an unspecified number of Palestinian and Arab prisoners for Goldwasser and Regev.

The officials went on to say that Hizbullah had acquiesced to an Israeli request, mediated by German officials, to provide the information about its reservists, in addition to information about IAF navigator Ron Arad, missing since 1986.

References:
Jpost: Eyal Regev: We must listen to Nasrallah

Free: Gilad Shalit
: Gilad Shalit * Gilad and Israel * Gilad * Jewish Soldier and Gilad * Kidnapped Soldier * Ehud Goldwasser * Eldad Regev * Justice * Hostage * Kidnapped Israeli * Gilad Shalit * IDF* Terrorism* Jewish * Hamas * Jew

Body of Israeli swapped for Hizbullah prisoner, 2 slain fighters

2007-10-16T23:46:00.000+10:00

From YNet

Lebanese media reports Hizbullah hands over body of Israeli civilian to International Red Cross while Israel in turn hands over prisoner, bodies of two Hizbullah fighters. PM's office: Deal part of negotiations to return kidnapped soldiers Regev, Goldwasser
Hizbullah swapped the body of a dead Israeli in exchange for the bodies of two slain fighters and a Hizbullah prisoner at a crossing point along the border on Monday.

Israel's Channel 2 TV identified the Israeli as Gabriel Dwait, a Jewish immigrant from Ethiopia, who drowned in the Mediterranean Sea on January 20, 2005. He was 27 at the time.

An Israeli military vehicle carrying the bodies of the dead Lebanese was seen driving into the no-man's zone along the border at about sundown and returning shortly afterward, crossing paths with Lebanese ambulances headed the other way.

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's office said in a statement that the deal was made ''in the framework of negotiations to return captured soldiers Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser.'' Lebanese officials said Israel also received information on missing navigator Ron Arad.

Officials did not immediately confirm what was inside the vehicles.

Lebanon's state-run National News Agency reported that Hizbullah handed over to the International Red Cross the body of Israeli civilian and that the ICRC took custody from Israel of two guerrilla bodies and a prisoner.

ICRC officials declined to comment on the swap. United Nations officials from the UN peacekeeping force deployed in southern Lebanon could not be reached for comment. The peacekeeping force, which is headquartered in Naqoura, has in the past been involved in similar swaps.

Although Monday's exchange was limited in scope, the fact that it is taking place could improve the chances of further swaps involving the two Israeli soldiers whose capture triggered a conflict last year between Hizbullah and Israel.

Israeli government and military officials declined to comment Monday on the possibility of a swap.

Regev, Goldwasser not part of deal
The capture by Hizbullah of Israeli soldiers Goldwasser and Regev during a cross border raid in July 2006 sparked the 34-day war between the Shiite Muslim group and Israel. Three other Israeli soldiers were killed in the raid.

Some 1,200 people were killed in Lebanon during the war, most of them civilians. Israel lost about 160 people in the fighting, most of them soldiers, but failed to win the freedom for its soldiers.

It did not appear that the two abducted soldiers were part of the swap Monday, despite a UN Security Council resolution demanding that Hizbullah turn over the soldiers.

New TV, a local Beirut station, reported that the bodies of the two Lebanese would be exchanged for the corpse of an Israeli who had drowned in the Mediterranean and whose body was swept northward by current. It did not elaborate.

A Lebanese official said the Israeli who would be swapped Monday ''died of a cause unrelated to last year's aggression.'' The official spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue.

'I wish Samir Kantar were returned before my son'
Two ambulances were seen Monday driving through the last Lebanese army checkpoint more than a mile from the Israeli border late afternoon, apparently to pick up the bodies of the Hizbullah guerrillas.

Lebanese troops kept journalists and civilians away from the border and the area where the swap was taking place. About 100 people gathered near the army checkpoint in this Mediterranean Sea fishing port.

Among those waiting was Hussein Wizwaz, in his 60s, who came after hearing from Hizbullah that the body of his son would be repatriated.

Ali Wizwaz, 32, was killed in a major ground battle with Israeli troops during the summer 2006 war in the border village of Maroun al-Ras, his father said.

''I heard on television that there will be some prisoner exchange,'' the man said, adding that he contacted a Hizbullah office and was informed that the bodies of his son as well as guerrilla Mohammed Dimashqiyeh would be returned.

''I wish Samir Kantar and his comrades would be set free before my son, the martyr, because those who are alive are more important than the martyrs,'' the man said. Kantar is the longest-held Lebanese in Israel, imprisoned since 1979 for killing three Israelis.

Dimashqiyeh's aunt, Maryam Saad, waved the portrait of the guerrilla in military uniform over her head and wept, saying she came not even knowing whether the man was among those repatriated.

''Whether him or others, I will not be upset,'' she said. ''All our prisoners and martyrs are equal and the same.''

The state-run news agency in Beirut identified the Lebanese prisoner sent back as Hassan Naim Akil.

Last year, Israeli officials for the first time raised the possibility that the two soldiers held by Hizbullah might not have survived the initial attack. Military officials then said one of the soldiers was critically wounded and the other seriously wounded when they were captured, without giving further details.

Hizbullah has repeated the two captured soldiers would be freed only in exchange for freedom of all Lebanese prisoners held in Israel.

Several Hizbullah members were captured during last year's war. In addition to Kantar, the main Lebanese prisoners held in Israel are Nasim Nisr, a Lebanese-born Israeli captured for having contacts with Hizbullah, and Yehia Skaff, who was detained in 1978 while taking part in a Palestinian militant attack that killed 35 Israelis, are also held in Israel prisoner.

References:
YNet: Body of Israeli swapped for Hizbullah prisoner, 2 slain fighters

Free: Gilad Shalit
: Eldad Regev * Ehud Goldwasser * Gilad Shalit * Jewish Soldier and Gilad * Kidnapped Soldier * Justice * Hizbullah * Kidnapped Israeli * Gilad Shalit * IDF* Gabriel Dwait* Jewish * Prisoner exchange * Jew

Olmert/Bush, Don't Miss This Opportunity

2007-10-02T06:40:00.000+10:00

If there is to be yet another summit, let some good come out of it.

Israel has again and again (always to her own detriment), made all the concessions, in this never ending quest for peace with the Arabs. The Arabs, on the other hand, make empty promises, and do nothing. Even worse, they perceive concession to be weakness and demand even more.

This total mockery of the so-called peace process is nothing short of insanity. A well known definition of insanity is to do the same things over and over again, expecting a different outcome. This time let's break with this tragic cycle. Let's put some real demands on the table, and let's stick to them.

Mr. Bush and Mr. Olmert, we demand that you not let this so-called peace summit you have planned become just one more missed opportunity. Demand that the soldiers be released before any further concessions on Israel's part.

Again, Mr. President and Mr. Prime Minister, do not miss this opportunity. Demand the release of the Israeli soldiers being held by the Arabs, and do not offer anything until this condition is met.

Please read the article from Israel National News below:

Regev: Why Does Olmert Offer Good Will to Arabs and not Jews?

by Hana Levi Julian

(IsraelNN.com) Benny Regev, brother of kidnapped IDF reservist Eldad Regev, urged Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Sunday to make goodwill gestures to Israeli citizens as well as to Arab terrorists whom he ordered released in order to prop up the government of Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas.

Speaking to approximately 3,000 people at the eastern Gush Etzion community of Nokdim, celebrating the 40th anniversary of the re-establishment of Jewish communities in Gush Etzion, Regev called on the Prime Minister to raise the bar on his efforts to rescue the soldiers kidnapped in 2006.

Regev’s brother Eldad and fellow reservist Ehud Goldwasser were kidnapped on July 12, 2006 by Hizbullah terrorists in a cross-border raid from southern Lebanon. Neither has been seen or heard from since. Just two weeks earlier, IDF Cpl. Gilad Shalit was kidnapped by Hamas terrorists in a cross-border raid from Gaza. With the exception of an undated audio tape featuring Gilad’s voice, he also has not been seen or heard from since his abduction.

“Ehud Olmert, demand a sign of life of the captives before the peace conference in November, and make this demand a condition for your attendance,” urged Regev. He added that the government is equally obligated to build trust among its own people as it does with the PA. Ehud Olmert, demand a sign of life of the captives before the peace conference in November, and make this demand a condition for your attendance.

“We must also demand trust-building steps from the Arab states and the Palestinians,” he asserted. “They must prove to us that their way is a way of peace and concessions, respect for human rights and international law.”

The issue of trust, emphasized so often by politicians from the PA and elsewhere in their efforts to persuade Israel to buckle on security measures, must also apply at home, said Regev.

“We must build up the trust of citizens called for reserves or compulsory service, full trust, because all of us – and especially the representatives of the people – stand behind them and beside them during their service and in the event of, G-d forbid, injury or captivity,” he said.

“This is a meeting of Arab states, the United States and other countries that are committed to the release of the captives according to U.N. Resolution 1701 and if he does not [demand a sign of life], we have missed another chance,” he reminded.

The U.S.-sponsored Mideast summit, slated to be held November in Annapolis, Maryland, is expected to focus on the issue of territorial and other concessions by Israel to the PA and the formation of yet another Arab state, in Judea and Samaria.

Free: Gilad Shalit: Gilad Shalit: Gilad Shalit * Gilad and Israel * Gilad * Jewish Soldier and Gilad * Kidnapped Soldier * Justice * Hostage * Kidnapped Israeli * Gilad Shalit * IDF* Terrorism* Jewish * Hamas * Jew

Karnit Goldwasser confronts Ahmadinejad

2007-09-26T12:50:00.000+10:00

Goldwasser takes Ahmadinejad to task
The wife of one of the IDF soldiers kidnapped by Hizbullah last summer infiltrated a UN press conference with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Tuesday to demand information on her husband.

"Why are you not allowing the Red Cross to visit them?" Karnit Goldwasser asked of her husband Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev, who was kidnapped with him. When Ahmadinejad didn't respond to her questioning, despite her having been called on by the moderator, she asked, "How come you're not answering me?"

Right before Goldwasser's question, Ahmadinejad refused to answer a question from Channel 10 correspondent Gil Tamari. Tamari asked whether Iran was concerned that Israel might take an action similar to the one it took last week, in which the IAF allegedly bombed a possible nuclear site in Syria. Ahmadinejad simply said, "Next question."

When another reporter asked a question seeking clarity on whether the Iranian president recognized Israel or wanted to destroy it, he asked for the journalist's news outlet before responding. Told that it was a Fox News reporter, he declined to address the question directly, but did eventually ask, rhetorically, "The Soviet Union, where is it now? It failed. It disappeared. Was it done through war? No." He also reiterated his support for the Palestinians' right to self-determination, as well as earlier calls he has made for a Palestinian referendum.

Later, when a different reporter asked a similar question, Ahmadinejad replied, "They really want to hurt us, but with the support of God, they won't be able to harm the Iranian nation."

References:
JPost: Goldwasser takes Ahmadinejad to task

Free: Gilad Shalit
: Gilad Shalit * Karnit Goldwasser * Ehud Goldwasser * Gilad * Mahmoud Ahmadinejad * Jewish Soldier and Gilad * Kidnapped Soldier * Justice * Hostage * Kidnapped Israeli * Gilad Shalit * IDF* Terrorism* Jewish * Hamas * Jew

Report: Hamas moves Schalit, fearing kidnapped senior member will 'sing'

2007-09-15T23:28:00.000+10:00

Kidnapped IDF Cpl. Gilad Schalit, held by Hamas since June 2006, has been transferred to a new hiding place, Channel Two reported Tuesday.

A commentator on the station estimated that the kidnapping of Senior Hamas official Mohawah al-Qadi, at first denied by the IDF but then referred to by Interior Security Minister Avi Dichter, was the reason for transferring Schalit.

Reportedly, Hamas was afraid al-Qadi would disclose details regarding the whereabouts of the soldier.

References:
JPost: Report: Hamas moves Schalit, fearing kidnapped senior member will 'sing'

Red Cross Pushing for Shalit's Release

2007-09-07T02:20:00.000+10:00

I heard contradictory news about whether the Red Cross is indeed involved in this--The BBC is say the Red Cross is involved:

The Director General of the ICRC, Angelo Gnaedinger, met Ismail Haniya in Gaza on Wednesday.

Afterwards, Mr Gnaedinger said he was told a visit to Corporal Shalit was "under consideration and that everybody is working on a positive solution".

Cpl Shalit was seized in Israel by Palestinian militants in June 2006.

ICRC officials say they have raised the issue of gaining access to the captured Israeli soldier in five previous meetings with Hamas, but Mr Gnaedinger's visit was the most senior-level attempt to resolve the issue.

A statement from Mr Haniya after the meeting made no mention of any possible visit to Cpl Shalit. Instead, he said he hoped that Palestinian prisoners and the Israeli soldier would be released in an "honourable prisoner-swap deal".

The Haaretz newspaper reports that Israel has sent Hamas a new proposal in its negotiations over Gilad Shalit. No further details are given.

Quoting a senior Hamas official, the paper also says European officials from more than one country have recently begun mediating between Israel and Hamas over the soldier.

The question is whether in the process of mediating, those involved will pressure Israel further on releasing more terrorists in exchange for Shalit.

"Don't Let Apathy Kill Them"

2007-08-28T15:24:00.000+10:00

From Arutz Sheva:

Tel Aviv Birthday Party Rally for Shalit

Family and friends of kidnapped IDF soldier Gilad Shalit are planning a large 21st birthday party rally at Rabin Square in Tel Aviv Tuesday. Organizers will hand out small magnets with slogans stating "Don't let apathy kill them" and "We're waiting for you back home."

Hamas has refused a request by Shalit's father Noam to publish in its newspaper a birthday letter to Gilad. Independent Arab newspapers previously have published personal letters to his son, who was kidnapped by Hamas and other terrorists more than a year ago.

Hamas wants prisoner release for Schalit video

2007-08-28T14:05:00.000+10:00

"We did not blackmail Israel, and we gave free information to Gilad Schalit's father and his family that Gilad Schalit is still alive. When he asked us to bring him glasses for his sight, we did so as a humanitarian duty. We treat Gilad Schalit in a humanitarian way that is in line with the Palestinians' morals," Hamas leader in Syria, Khaled Mashaal told a CNN reporter on Monday.

"Hamas changed a lot and great efforts have been made to conform to the realistic positions of Palestinians and Arabs. When Hamas says with other Palestinians forces that we demand for a Palestinian country as the border was back in 1967, Isn't this a development? [Sic]" he added.

But past reports in virtually all Israeli media outlets painted a picture less rosy than Mashaal's account Monday. Hamas's release of an audiotape with Schalit's voice was the first sign of life from him, Red Cross representatives have yet to be allowed to contact him, his glasses were never given to him and reportedly, his captors were not treating him according to the guidelines stated in the Geneva Convention.

Also, comments made by Ahmed Youssef, an aide to Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh earlier Monday, prove that no shred of information was "freely" given to Israel by Hamas, as Mashaal claimed in his interview.

If Palestinian women and children were freed from Israeli jails, Youssef said, Hamas would consider releasing a videotape of captured IDF soldier Cpl. Gilad Schalit which would reveal information about his condition.

The aforementioned audiotape was released on June 25, a year after the soldier was captured.

Yousef told Israel Radio that Hamas was prepared to "give another gesture of goodwill" if Israel responds accordingly.

"When we released the voice recording of Schalit we expected something from Israel in return, namely, the release of women and children from Israeli jails."

"If Israel would have done this we would have published a videotape of Schalit talking about himself," said Yousef, lamenting, "unfortunately, this never happened."

He concluded by saying that if Israel agrees to the proposal, Hamas will consider a "new initiative" in the form of a video recording.

Tuesday marks the 21st birthday of the captured IDF soldier - his second birthday spent in captivity.

References:
JPost.com: Hamas wants prisoner release for Schalit video

Prose to Ponder

2007-08-18T13:21:00.000+10:00

A haiku

really, what irks us
is...ideology kills
free Gilad Shalit

7/6/07
by rda

A Poem

clasping peace
piece by piece
peace piped in
breaking ways
piece meal
breaking bread
flat bread shared
piece by tattered piece
full-filling my guts desire...

for peace
shorn off the lamb's weathered wool
living amongst the enemy
piece of my peace
piece of your peace
blanket persists stitch by stitch

2/14/04
by rda

thanks to Haikuiraq.blogspot.com

A Christian perspective: A poem about Freeing Gilad

2007-08-18T13:06:00.001+10:00

Gilad at 19 you are just a lad,
they were cowards taking you
but we havent stopped praying
nor will we do, until the Lord delivers you
Your father mourns a son and heir
The Heavenly Father hears our prayer
Yes we are Christians we worship Yeshua
But we faithfully bless you of that please be sure
We know that our God answers prayer
We know though alone you will not feel lonely
For the Holy Spirit can reach you even when only
He can cos you are far from the touch of friends.
And so this poem slowly ends. Gilad you are
prayed for by all your friends, friends you do not
know from across the world, friends who march under
a banner of Love unfurled in the Heavenly Realm
with Yeshua Ha Messiach at the helm
So we pray psalm 91 and we pray for your health and
your strength and protection and declare to the enemy
wherever the lurk - Our God Reigns and completes His work
on earth as in Heaven love and faith are leaven.......................

By the Way...
The Following Poem was submitted by Valerie.
As the moderator of this blog,[Mr Bagel] I'd like to indicate that I respect peoples rights to their chosen religious beliefs.

Personally I'm Jewish, and on my own personal blog I wouldn't entertain the notion of posting a Poem that featured beliefs that contradict my own held beliefs.

But the desire to free Gilad Shalit is not about any particular persons religious beliefs, its simply the decent thing to want and because of that, I have decided to post this poem.

Valerie I appreciate the time you spent in writing this poem.

Regards Mr Bagel

Almost Lost Another One

2007-07-31T03:22:00.000+10:00

The BBC reports:

Israeli soldiers patrolling the streets of Hebron, in the West Bank, last September
Israeli politicians said the incident was "unacceptable"
An Israeli soldier has rejoined his unit after being left behind in Gaza during a raid against Palestinian militants, army officials have said.

The only thing more unsettling than how it happened is the claim that the circumstances are not unusual:

The soldier fell asleep during the operation last Thursday, but his absence was not noticed until his colleagues returned to Israel.

The unit re-entered Gaza several hours later and rescued the soldier, who had fired a flare and tracers into the air.

The Israeli military said it had launched an inquiry into the incident.

Israeli Deputy Defence Minister Matan Vilnai told Israel Radio that similar incidents had happened "dozens of times".

"People are tired and not thinking straight after long hours or long days," the Associated Press news agency quoted him as saying.

At a time that Israel's efforts to rescue 3 kidnapped soldiers have been a complete failure, articles like this are not reassuring--though that last line might explain Olmert after 1 1/2 long years.

Jenin leader of Al Quds Brigades abducted by Israeli undercover agents

2007-07-28T01:15:00.001+10:00

From Maan News Agency

Israeli undercover forces are said to have abducted the leader of the Jenin chapter of the Islamic Jihad-affiliated Al Quds Brigades, Adham Younis Al 'Azza (25), when he was visiting the city of Tulkarem in the northern West Bank on Thursday afternoon.

A Ma'an correspondent reported that shots were fired at Al-'Azza's car from a white Volkswagen with Palestinian number plates. Then, the men in the Volkswagen abducted Al-'Azza, taking him to an unknown destination.

Eyewitnesses declared that dozens of Israeli soldiers could be seen standing on the rooftops of nearby houses.

Al-'Azza has previously escaped many Israeli assassination attempts.

Can anything be read into this? Is this just a tactic used against a terrorist that has escaped assassination in the past, a potential bargaining chip for kidnapped Israeli soldiers, or maybe a message that kidnapping is a tactic that works both ways.

If the terrorists speak about on this, they can always equate this with their kidnappings and say it justifies what they do--and if they don't, their apologists will.

Why is the Israeli government releasing any Palestinian Prisoners?

2007-07-18T02:06:00.000+10:00

Rehavam Zeevi, Israeli Tourism Minister, was shot by four
gunmen in the Jersusalem Hyatt hotel in October 2001

Israel 'to free leader of terror group that killed minister'

Israeli Cabinet ministers today approved a list of 256 Palestinian prisoners slated to be released this week in a gesture of support for Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian President, said to include the No 2 in the radical PFLP group.

The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine - a militant PLO faction listed as a terrorist organisation by the United States and European Union - claimed responsibility in 2001 for the assassination of Rehavam Zeevi, the right-wing Israeli Tourism Minister.

The names of the prisoners to be released have not been announced, but Palestinian sources said that they would include Abdelrahim Malluh, deputy leader of the PFLP. "“President Abbas has told the Malluh family that he will be freed,” Khalida Jarar, a PFLP official, told AFP.

David Baker, an official in the office of Ehud Olmert, the Israeli Prime Minister, said that a ministerial committee approved the release by seven votes to two. The list is to be published later today, giving Israelis 48 hours to file legal challenges before the prisoners, including six women, are released on Friday.

According to Mr Baker's statement, "there is no blood on their hands" - meaning that none has been directly involved in attacks on Israelis.

But Mr Malluh's inclusion on the list, giving his senior rank in the PFLP, is likely to prove controversial. Zeevi was shot by four gunmen in the Jersusalem Hyatt hotel in October 2001 in a what was said to be a reprisal for the assassination two months earlier of Abu Ali Mustafa, the PFLP leader.

Malluh was arrested in 2002 and sentenced in 2004 to nine years by an Israeli military tribunal for belonging to a terrorist organisation. The PFLP leader Ahmed Saadat remains in Israeli custody, although he has not been tried.

Israel pledged to release the prisoners as a "goodwill gesture" to Mr Abbas to help shore up his authority after Hamas gunmen routed the forces of his Fatah movement as they took over the Gaza strip last month. Eighty-five per cent of those to be released are Fatah members; none is from Hamas.

But the Palestinian minister for prisoner affairs, Ashraf al-Ajrami, said that the release of 250 out of more than 10,000 Palestinians in Israeli jails was not enough.

"Israel insists on releasing those who have limited sentences," Mr al-Ajrami said. "We want a release of prisoners who received long sentences."

Mr Bagel: I can't believe what I'm seeing? Why, why would you realease prisoners? To reward what? Name one thing the Palestinians have done that justifies a gesture such as this?

Why are we making a gesture of support for Mahmoud Abbas, what has he done?
Why does Israel insist on making first 'gestures', why does Israel insist on weakening its negotiating position? I can't understand why we allow the government to do this?

It has never lead to anything positive for the Jewish state.

There should be absolutely no prisoner releases until Gilad Shalit is released. To even consider releasing any prisoners simply compromises the position Israel starts from in trying to get Gilad Shalit's release.

Why does the Israeli government never learn?

I'm flabbergasted at the ineptness of this Government.

References:
Times online: Israel 'to free leader of terror group that killed minister'

Free: Gilad Shalit
: Release of Prisoners * Gilad Shalit * Israel Government makes gesture * Gilad Shalit * Gilad and Israel * Gilad * Jewish Soldier and Gilad * Kidnapped Soldier * Prisoner release * Fatah Prisoners to be released * Rehavam Zeevi * Palestinain Authority Jewish * Justice * Hostage * Kidnapped Israeli * Gilad Shalit * IDF* Terrorism* Jewish * Hamas * Jew

Hamas man involved in Shalit kidnapping arrested

2007-07-14T21:49:00.000+10:00

Man also admits to participating in infiltration of IDF outpost five years ago and several missile launchings

The IDF and Shin Bet arrested Mohammad Sufi, an operative affiliated with Hamas and the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC) who admitted to involvement in the kidnapping of IDF soldier Gilad Shalit one year ago, it was cleared for publication on Friday.

Sufi (30) was arrested at the beginning of July, and was responsible for documenting the June 25, 2006 attack and kidnapping at Kerem Shalom as part of Hamas' propaganda campaign.

During his investigation, Sufi also admitted to involvement in the infiltration into an IDF outpost in southern Gaza five years ago, in January of 2002. Four soldiers, including a major, were killed in that incident.

Sufi, who lives in Rafah on the border with Egypt, admitted to having fired several missiles towards Israel and planting explosive devices against IDF forces.

These devices caused the injury of a number of soldiers, in the incidents cited.

Mr Bagel: Note another fact that points to the ever increasing scenario that Hamas was directly involved in this crime.

Don't allow the Palestinian Terrorists to play Musical Chairs, they must be held accountable. The Hamas leadership is directly responsible and accountable.

References: Ynet News: Hamas man involved in Shalit kidnapping arrested [End]

Report: Hizbullah took reservists alive

2007-07-14T21:27:00.000+10:00

A Lebanese reporter with close ties to Hizbullah chief Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah was quoted by Channel 1 on Thursday night as saying that kidnapped IDF reservists Eldad Regev and Ehud Golwasser had been taken alive from their military vehicle when they were abducted exactly one year ago.

According to the report, Hizbullah filmed the kidnapping before hiding the video in an undisclosed location.

Less than an hour after the incident, the reporter claimed, Nasrallah received a message saying that "the gift has arrived," referring to the captured reservists.

Nasrallah reportedly responded to the news by asking whether Hizbullah had any casualties and what the Israeli media was reporting.

[END]
References: Jpost: Report: Hizbullah took reservists alive

Has Anybody Seen Ehud, Eldad, or Gilad?

2007-07-13T12:48:00.000+10:00

One year ago today Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev joined Gilad Shalit as prisoners of Islamic Terrorists...at least we think that is the case. Hezbollah says they are alive and in their Hands but there has been no communication from them, no pictures or Red Cross visits--no word from to their families that they are OK.

Each of the kidnappings were made without provocation and on Israeli soil. Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev were kidnapped under the watchful eyes of the UN. Other kidnappings during during this year provoked world outrage they were released, two Fox broadcasters and the BBC's Mr. Johnston (who after his release took a victory tour thanking every terrorist he could find). Where is the outrage for Ehud, Eldad, and Gilad?

When negotiating the truce for this past summer's war in Lebanon, Israel wanted any cease-fire delayed until Eldad and Ehud were released but France said no. Olmert gave in and together they sentinced Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev to a long imprisonment.

Where is the UN Human Rights Council? Why havent the UNFIL troops insisted on the return of Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev as outlined in the cease fire agreement? Why hasn't France SHOUTED for the return of French citizen Gilad Shalit the way the British shouted for their BBC Reporter? Why isn't the BBC campaining for all of the terrorist's hostages in Gaza to be released? Is Gilad Shalit not just as human as Johnston? Does Ehud Goldwasser's wife love him any less? Was Eldad Regev less kind? I don't think so.[Click read more...]

The world just them as less human because they are Israeli and they are Jewish. Stare into their eyes and read their stories below--- make them come alive in your heart see them as individuals with loved ones not just captives. Then please come to Monday's rally at the UN and show the world that we will not let this stand.

Gilad Shalit
Gilad (20) was born on 08/28/1986. He is the son of Aviva and Noam Schalit from Mitzpe Hilla in the Western Galilee and the brother of Yoel (23) and Hadas (16). Gilad was born in Nahariya but was raised from the age of two in Mitzpe Hilla. He went to the regional elementary school in Maona and to junior high in Kfar Veradim. He graduated with distinction from the science class of “Manor Kabri” high school. Gilad loves mainly math and sports. He has enjoyed playing basketball ever since he was a child, but is interested in sports in general. He follows the different leagues and tournaments all over the world, from tennis and basketball to cycling and athletics. If you wish to know the results of a tournament somewhere in the world – it’s Gilad you should ask.

Gilad began his military service about a year ago – at the end of July 2005. He preferred to serve in a combat unit despite the fact that he could have avoided combat duty due to a low medical profile. He followed his elder brother Yoel into the armored forces. Yoel had finished his service a year earlier. Gilad was highly motivated. He overcame all the obstacles facing a combat recruit of the armored forces and successfully ended his training a few months ago. For the last couple of months he has been on duty guarding and ensuring the security of the settlements around Gaza.

Gilad is a well-mannered, quiet and introverted young man. An almost permanent shy and hesitant smile light up his face. Gilad is always volunteering to help everyone; even on his short vacations from the army he helped his parents run their “Bed & Breakfast”.

Since the attack at Kerem Shalom on Sunday, 06/25/2006, Gilad has been held in the Gaza Strip by Hamas.

Gilad - Mother and Father, Yoel and Hadas and all the family and all your friends miss you terribly and wish to see you and your smile already and to embrace you in a strong and loving embrace.

Ehud Goldwasser (Udi)

Udi (31) was born in Nahariya on 07/18/1975. He is the son of Miki and Shlomo and elder brother of Yair (26) and Gadi (23). He married Karnit 10 months ago, after 9 years of seeing each other. Udi and Karnit share a great love and a very special relationship.

Udi is a graduate of the science class in “Amal Comprehensive High School”, Nahariya. He served in the combat battalion “Tzabar Givati”. After his military service he toured Australia alone on a motorcycle for half a year. Later, he completed his preparatory studies in the Technion and went on to study environmental engineering.

Udi is a kind and much loved person. He is considerate of other people’s opinions even if they oppose his own. It’s fun being in his company. He is a loving caring person, always ready to offer a helping hand in any situation. He is a man of principles and values, knowledgeable in many varied subjects. He loves movies, music and spending time with his friends.

He has many friends from the different periods of his life: His childhood friends with whom he grew up in Nahariya, pals from the army, friends from the Technion and friends from his travels around the world. Conservation of the environment is of the utmost importance to him. Indeed, he joined a Green group so as to help clean our nature reserves.

Udi loves animals, and although he suffers from a mild fur allergy, he lives with two cats and lovingly adopted “mishehoo” (“someone”), an abandoned and injured dog he found in the street. He is a sworn lover of motorcycles and has encyclopedic knowledge of all models made all over the world and their technical details.

Over the last few years he has developed a great interest in photography. He spends much of his spare time taking pictures of scenery and nature in Israel and abroad. Lately, his hobby has become a profession having begun to work on some projects as a photographer.

As a child he sailed the seas with his father, and has recently got his “skipper” license for sailing yachts and was planning to sail abroad.

Udi has a special love for children. He is always talking proudly of the kids in his family and of his friends’ kids. Karnit and he are dreaming of their own addition to their family!

On the 07/12/2006 Udi was abducted to Lebanon after Hezbollah attacked his military patrol.

Eldad Regev Eldad Regev is 26 years old. Born and raised in Kiryat Motzkin. Eldad is the son of Tova (of blessed memory) and Zvi Regev, and brother of Benny, Ofer and Eyal. Eldad attended “Mitzpe”, a religious elementary school in Kiryat Motzkin, before continuing his education in the nearby Yeshiva High School in Kiryat Shmuel. After completing three years of military service in the elite Givati infantry brigade, he enrolled in Bar Ilan University's pre-law preparatory course with the aim of being accepted to the university's Law faculty. Eldad is loved and immensely popular among all that know him.

In high school, Eldad excelled in biology and passed all his matriculation exams with ease. In spite of his mother Tova's untimely death (of blessed memory) while he was in the 12th grade, Eldad decided to serve in a combat unit and volunteered for Givati. After the service, like most of his friends he traveled to the Far East. On his return he started to work while at the same time continuing his studies in Bar Ilan University’s academic preparatory course.

One of the qualities that makes Eldad so special is the kindness of his heart – never hesitating to donate and offer aid to anyone in need. He always likes to stay informed and is constantly involved in what is happening around him. Eldad made many friends throughout high school and during his army service, all of whom can attest to his fine qualities.

Among Eldad’s hobbies are football (last year he passed a coaching course - he is a fan of Maccabi Tel Aviv football team), music and books.

A fanatical football fan, before being called up for reserve duty Eldad closely followed the World Cup games. He also went to Roger Water’s (of Pink Floyd) concert in Kerem Shalom.

Eldad was called up for military reserve duty after completing his exams at the preparatory course in Bar Ilan University. During his reserve duty he spoke with his family and told them of his experiences. Three days before his abduction he visited his family and participated in the annual memorial for his mother. Later, he watched the last game of the World Cup between Italy and France. The following day he returned to the complete the remainder of his reserve duty.

On July 12th 2006 Eldad was abducted and taken to Lebanon after Hezbollah attacked his military patrol.

FREE THEM NOW!
One long year has passed since IDF soldiers Gilad Shalit, Ehud Goldwasser, and Eldad Regev were kidnapped by Hamas and Hezbollah.
Show the world we have not forgotten and will not forget them.
Join us in demanding their immediate and unconditional release.
Monday, July 16th, 2007
12:00 noon / Rain or Shine
Dag Hammarskjold Plaza ( 1st Ave. and 47th St . ) New York City , NY
PLEASE JOIN US AND BRING EVERYONE YOU KNOW!

Hamas Heroes

2007-07-13T01:05:00.000+10:00

Hamas Heroes

Beeb!* Your bold reporter is free! --
Released, like the poor canary
From a dark cave of perdition
That is Gaza. Let’s all rejoice!

Laughter burns. Loud cheers smoke the air.
Politicians cry relief
Along with the Press. Saviours
Misunderstood -- thank you Hamas!

Haniyeh, the broker, the brave,
the honest man, freedom fighter,
A face with which the world can side
Against the fabled terrorists.

Let us forget the Hamas charter
Of hate, the killings, the rockets,
Their harsh Sharia, and Shalit
Who slowly dies while all applaud.

By Beaman

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Less than a month ago, Hamas henchman were throwing their opponents from tall buildings in Gaza with their hands tied behind their back. For years they have been firing rockets into Israel, a democratic nation, leading to the deaths of many innocents. The same men sanctioned and ordered, and still do, suicide attacks in Tel Aviv nightclubs, buses and restaurants. A year ago they captured an Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit, whom they still hold hostage, asking in return for the release of hundreds of criminals. By all the latest reports, Shalit is dying, a slow, painful and lonely death in captivity.[click read more...]
Nevertheless, Hamas have today pulled off a propaganda victory of the highest proportions. In numerous interviews and discussions in Britain already, there have been calls for Hamas to be recognised as a viable political party, one that we should engage with. If only these willing people in Europe and America would cast off their intellectual laziness and read the Hamas Charter, which is committed to the extermination of Israel, the mass murder of Jews and the overthrow and Islamisation of the free world. Then add to that fact, that Hamas is not an isolated group but a wing of the worldwide Muslim Brotherhood which is strong especially in Egypt.

As British journalist Melanie Phillips best puts it:

All over the world, the Brotherhood is behind the pincer movement of jihad through terrorism and jihad through cultural capture. And manipulation is the name of the game it plays. It creates terrorist or insurrectionary pressure; it then poses as the ‘honest broker’ peacemaker; it thus turns its victims into its supplicants and can then turn the ratchet still further. It played this game in France, when the French government implored the Brotherhood imams to restore order in the wake of the Muslim riots in the banlieues (riots that it said were ‘nothing to do with Islam’). It has played it over Alan Johnston. And it is playing it in Britain and the US, where its proxies have been pushing hard for ‘engagement’ with the Brotherhood as an antidote to al Qaeda — and where, with the British and American political elite now in such moral, intellectual and political disarray, it is now succeeding. (Link)

Beaman

abandoning our soldiers

2007-07-12T22:00:00.000+10:00

The Second Lebanon War began exactly one year ago today. Two soldiers, Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad regev, were kidnapped on the northern border by Hezbollah operatives. They covered their bases with a distraction by shooting some missiles into Israel. During the mission to kidnap these soldiers, they also killed three other soldiers.

Israel responded with airstrikes, and eventually a limited ground invasion. The soldiers have not, as of yet, been recovered. They are still in captivity, along with Gilad Shalit in Gaza, and the soldiers of the '80s - Tzvi Feldman, Yehuda Katz, Zacharya Baumel, Ron Arad and Guy Hever who disappeared in August of 1997.

Are we doing enough to obtain the release of the captive soldiers? Until they are home, the answer has to be "no". We cannot say we are doing all we can until we achieve success.
[Click read more...]

It has to be the goal and discipline of every army and government to protect the soldiers they send out to battle. To not abandon them. In October 2000, when Joseph's Tomb was overrun by PA militants, Ehud Barak, then Prime Minister, pulled the troops out of the area, instead of defending it. In the process, he abandoned one Israeli soldier (Druze I think) in the tomb and decided not to go back to extract him. The result was a lynching of the soldier, which led to his brutal death.

The world was not outraged. The world does not care when a Jew is brutally murdered. The world does not care when an Israeli is brutally murdered. Nobody will defend us and nobody will protect us. Nobody will be outraged on our behalf. That is our job, with Hashems help, because nobody will do it for us.

We abandoned our soldier then, but we must learn our lesson from it. We have to be vigilant in defending our people, our land and our heritage.

Our government is in the process of making more concessions to Abu Mazen on the hope that it will strengthen him against his opponents in Hamas. We have been strengthening Abu Mazen for years already and we have never gotten anything in return, except for grief.

We need to be less concerned about who is strong on the PA side, and more concerned about strengthening ourselves and protecting ourselves. The soldiers need to know that we will not rest until they are all safe. they need to know they go out to fight to protect us, but we will do whatever we can to keep them safe and get them home safely from missions.

And we cannot abandon our soldiers. We have to remember them - in our thoughts, in our prayers, in our deeds.

I have noticed that in many shuls there are signs requesting people pray for the three missing soldiers - Ehud Goldwasser, Eldad Regev and Gilad Shalit - for their safety, health and quick return to their people.

These signs are abandoning our soldiers. There are no signs about the other missing soldiers. Are there suddenly only three missing soldiers? Were the other five returned to Israel? Were they declared dead and brought to a Jewish funeral? Did I miss that day?

We are missing eight soldiers. Yes, the loss of the most recent three is more acute, because of its freshness and the pain of the subsequent war. But that gives us no right to abandon any of the other soldiers.

We must do all we can to obtain the release of all the soldiers, and bring them back home.

Web Black Out For Kidnapped Soldiers

2007-07-12T17:32:00.000+10:00

From Arutz 7:

Leading Israeli Internet web sites plan to shut down operations for five minutes at 9:05 a.m. (2:05 a.m. EDT) Thursday in order to promote public awareness of the lack of information on the fate of kidnapped IDF soldiers Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev.

Hizbullah terrorists kidnapped the soldiers a year ago today during a cross-border attack on IDF positions, setting off the war that lasted for almost five weeks. Prime Minister Ehud Olmert stated at the outset that the war would end only after the soldiers were returned but later backed down from his position, when it became evident that the IDF and Home Front Command were not prepared for the massive attacks, that included 4,000 rockets on the Galilee.

This is what jpost.com looked like:

Rally to Remember Regev and Goldwasser

2007-07-08T23:39:00.000+10:00

The families of IDF reservists Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser will join others whose loved ones were kidnapped as soldiers by terrorists at a rally to mark one year since their capture, scheduled for Thursday at the ‘Gan HaEm’ (Mothers’ Garden) in Haifa.

Goldwasser and Regev were kidnapped on July 12, 2006 by Hizbullah terrorists in a cross-border attack from southern Lebanon.

The event is organized by the Haifa municipality. The northern port city suffered repeated Katyusha rocket attacks during last summer’s 34-day Second Lebanon War against Hizbullah.

J O S H U A P U N D I T: Update: Alan Johnston's release in Gaza

2007-07-05T19:25:00.000+10:00

This update just posted yesterday by, Freedom Fighter, at JoshuaPundit, discusses the renewed hope for a soon release of kidnapped hostage, Gilad Shalit.

Freedom Fighter first reports the details surrounding the release of British journalist, Alan Johnston, held for 114 days, by the Durmush clan, after his abduction, in Gaza, and his subsequent release, and ends with a brief discussion of the possible hopes Johnston's release may hold for a soon release from captivity, of Gilad.

Please read Freedom Fighter's original post below:

Dated: Wednesday, July 04, 2007

Updated: Alan Johnston's release in Gaza

[click read more...]

Alan Johnston, following his release yesterday didn't linger with his Hamas benefactors but went quickly to the safety of the British consulate in Jerusalem, Israel. He compared his 114 days as a hostage to being "buried alive."

Apparently Johnston was being held by the powerful Durmush clan, the heads of the so-called `Army of Islam' who made the original snatch. It wasn't authorized by Hamas or Fatah, but in the leadup to the Gaza turf war neither was prepared to do much about it and risk alienating the Durmush. As you remember, Hamas boss Ismail Haniyeh said that Johnston's kidnappers were only seeking `a little reward' while Fatah boss Mahmoud Abbas kept stalling for time by saying that Johnston was in good health and would be released soon.

They both knew exactly where Johnston was and who was holding him through the entire period.

Now that the turf war in Gaza is over, Johnston was a liability to the Hamas government seeking renewed legitimacy and relations with the EU.

Accordingly, Hamas laid siege to the Durmush compound where Johnston was imprisoned, and to provide a little bargaining power, Hamas kidnapped two Durmush clan memebers, while the Durmush kidnapped nine Hamas operatives in revenge.

It all ended last night, when both sides exchanged their hostages and Johnston was freed.

Johnston’s freedom is a tremendous propaganda coup for the Hamas regime in Gaza and a step towards European recognition led by Britain. The new Brown government, already wilting under the impact of the recent Islamist attacks will likely lead the way towards the recognition and legitimization of the Hamas regime.

Apparently, this was in the cards even before Tony Blair stepped down as PM.

Reportedly, Blair promised Vladamir Putin to engage with the Hamas regime, which is how he got Russia's support for his appointment as the Middle East Quartet’s special envoy.

Johnston's release could also pave the way for the freeing of Israeli hostage Gilad Shalit. At the press conference with Johnston, Hamas PM Ismail Haniyeh, said he hoped to be able to free Shalit in an “honorable deal for the release of our heroes.” And Egypt has promised to send a mediator to negotiate a prisoner swap.

This comes straight from Hamas kingpin Khalid Meshaal in Damascus, who now is claiming that Shalit is a liability since the Gaza takeover, and Hamas has apparently presented mediators from Europe with a reduced list of a few hundred Hamas shooters in Israeli jails as the price they want for Gilead Shalit...discounted down from over 2,000.

Hamas probably believes that continuing to hold Shalit is just one more impetus for the Israelis to possibly go in and clean the area out. And if he really is seriously ill, as the recent tape that was released suggests, Hamas might just be figuring that it's better to get a reduced price for him while he's still alive as opposed to getting nothing for a corpse.

Posted by: Freedom Fighter
At: 12:32 PM

Free: Gilad Shalit: Gilad Shalit * Gilad and Israel * Gilad * Jewish Soldier and Gilad * Kidnapped Soldier * Justice * Hostage * Kidnapped Israeli * Gilad Shalit * IDF* Terrorism* Jewish * Hamas * Jew

A Lesson From The Release of Alan Johnston

2007-07-04T14:21:00.000+10:00

MSNBC reports on how it was done:

Hamas gunmen on Tuesday took up positions around the stronghold of the shadowy group holding Johnston, stepping up the pressure to secure his release.

Members of Hamas’ 6,000-strong militia moved onto high-rise rooftops and deployed gunmen in streets in the Gaza City neighborhood of the Doghmush clan.

Allahpundit gets it exactly right:

Take a lesson from people who would know — this is how you deal with jihadist threats.

Now it's Israel's turn to free Gilad Shalit.

Something to keep in mind on the 31st anniversary of the Entebbe Rescue.

NYC Rally for the release of the 3 Kidnapped Israeli Soldiers- How to get there -

2007-06-29T01:45:00.000+10:00

The Rally on July 16th to help free the 3 Kidnapped Israeli Soldiers will be held in close proximity to the United Nations Headquarters in New York.

The entrance to the rally will be at 47th Street; the site of the rally can be entered from Third Avenue or from First Avenue through Dag Hammarskjöld Plaza.

Choose from the list below on how you'll be getting to the rally from within New York City:

1. New York City Public Transportation
2. Grand Central Station (Metro North)
3. Penn Station (Long Island Railroad, New Jersey Transit, Amtrak)
4. LaGuardia, Kennedy or Newark Airports
5. Links to Public Transportation/Airport Web Sites

To see the list of ways to get there click the read more tag.

NEW YORK CITY TRANSPORTATION OPTIONS:

By Subway

4, 5, 7, or S (Shuttle) train to Grand Central Station (42nd Street)

6 train to either Grand Central Station (42nd Street) or to 51st Street station
E or F train to Lexington Avenue station (53rd Street). Walk 6 blocks south to 47th Street; then 1 block east to 3rd Avenue.
Please note that if you are traveling on the Southbound 6 train, the 51st station is wheelchair accessible. Call 1-800-734-6772 to assure the availability of elevators and escalators in that location on that day.

By Bus:

M15 or M27 bus to 47th Street & First Avenue
Eastbound M42 or M104 bus to 42nd Street & Third Avenue or First Avenue

GRAND CENTRAL STATION (Metro North):

From Grand Central Station walk east to the entrance on 47th Street. The walk should be less than 10 minutes.

FROM PENN STATION (Long Island Railroad, Amtrak, New Jersey Transit):

Queensbound E train to Lexington Avenue station (53rd Street).

FROM PORT AUTHORITY BUS TERMINAL:

S (Shuttle) train or number 7 train to Grand Central Station. Follow directions from Grand Central Station.
Eastbound M42 or M104 bus to 42nd Street & Third Avenue or First Avenue

NEW YORK AREA AIRPORTS

For information on getting into Manhattan from New York-area airports, click on the links below (NOTE: links will open in a new window):

LaGuardia Airport
Kennedy Airport
Newark Airport

To Manhattan from New York-area airports via public transportation:

From LaGuardia Airport:

Take the M60 bus to Second Avenue and 125th Street, then transfer to the Southbound M15, which runs down Second Avenue to 47th Street, or,
Take the M60 bus to Lexington Avenue and 125th Street, then take the Southbound 4,5 (express) or 6 (local) train to Grand Central Station (42nd Street).

From Kennedy Airport:

Take the Manhattan bound A train to 42nd Street, then transfer to the 7 train to Grand Central Station (42nd Street).

From Newark Airport:

After your arrival at the Port Authority Bus Terminal, take the Eastbound M42 or M104 bus across 42nd Street to Second Avenue.

PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION/AIRPORT WEB SITES(NOTE: links will open in a new window):

Long Island Rail Road (LIRR): www.lirr.org/lirr/index.html
New Jersey Transit: www.njtransit.com
Metro North: www.mta.nyc.ny.us/mnr/index.html
New York City Transit: www.mta.nyc.ny.us/nyct/index.html or call 718-330-1234
LaGuardia Airport: www.panynj.gov/aviation/lgaframe.HTM
JFK Airport: www.panynj.gov/aviation/jfkframe.HTM
Newark Airport: www.panynj.gov/aviation/ewrframe.HTM

Directions From Outside New York City:

Local Federations throughout North America may be sending delegations to the Rally. Please contact the Federation coordinator at your local Federation through JewishFinder

If you would like to take public transportation there are a number of options for travel to New York City. Please visit these websites or contact the ticket agents for times and tickets

This guide was provided to assist people going to the rally, please use your own investigations on how to get there. The guide was derived from a previous UJC guide.

Free: Gilad Shalit
: Free the Kidnapped soldiers * NYC Rally * NYC Jewish Rally * Dag Hammarskjöld Plaza * Free the Israeli Soldiers rally * UN Rally * July 16 * Jewish * Mr Bagel * BagelBlogger * Bagel Blogger * Jew

Rally for Gilad Shalit on July 16

2007-06-28T22:23:00.000+10:00

FREE THEM NOW!

One long year has passed since IDF soldiers Gilad Shalit, Ehud Goldwasser, and Eldad Regev were kidnapped by Hamas and Hezbollah.

Show the world we have not forgotten and will not forget them.

Join us in demanding their immediate and unconditional release.

Monday, July 16th, 2007
12:00 noon / Rain or Shine
Hammarskjold Plaza
(1st Ave. and 47 St . )
New York City

PLEASE JOIN US AND BRING EVERYONE YOU KNOW!

Sponsored by the:
Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations
And Jewish Community Relations Council of New York

In cooperation with the United Jewish Communities,
UJA-Federation of New York, and American Zionist Movement
For more information contact: Conference of Presidents 212-318-6111 or
info@conference of Presidents
JCRC at 212-983-4800 x 151
or info@jcrcny.org

Netanyahu: Swapping prisoners for Shalit would harm Israel

2007-06-28T03:24:00.000+10:00

Right: Likud Chairman and opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu.

Likud Chairman and opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday that "releasing [Palestinaian] prisoners would send out a misleading message and undermine our efforts, and would harm our battle against terrorism."

Speaking before the Jewish Agency assembly, Netanyahu said that "the government must do all that it can to secure the release of the kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit," but expressed his objection to the prisoner exchange deal proposed by Hamas, noting that "freeing terrorists would further weaken Abu-Mazen [Abbas] in the inter-Palestinian arena."

Addressing the issue of Qassam rocket fire on Sderot, Netanyahu said that Israel's central problem is "the collapse of deterrence," and suggested "changing the rules so that Hamas understands that they will pay a significantly heavier price."

Netanyahu also said that he would not serve as finance minister in Prime Minister Ehud Olmet's government, and that the Likud would not join the coalition and would press for early elections.

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Monday that he would seek cabinet approval for the release of 250 Fatah prisoners held in Israeli jails, as part of a package of steps aimed at strengthening Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas.

Speaking at the close of a four-way summit with Abbas, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Jordan's King Abdullah II, Olmert said only prisoners who Israel does not hold directly responsible for deaths of its citizens would be released.

"As a gesture of goodwill toward the Palestinians, I will bring before the Israeli cabinet at its next meeting a proposal to free 250 Fatah prisoners who do not have blood on their hands, after they sign a commitment not to return to violence," Olmert said.

Bagelblogger: I can't help but think the timing of this potential prisoner release is terrible. Why release any without something in return? Why release them, and then involve Hamas in a bidding war trying to get the same kind of compromise? Surely this is only going to lead to an escalation in Kidnap attempts and a dangerous form of poker bluff involving Gilad?

The history of prisoner releases does not bode well, how many of these 'prisoners with out blood on their hands' (that we know about) are going to end up being terrorists with 'blood on their hands'?

Why can't Israel take a position of strength and demand rather than always compromise?

Reference:
thanks to:
Haaretz.com: Netanyahu: Swapping prisoners for Shalit would harm Israel
By Amiram Barkat and Barak Ravid, Haaretz Correspondent

Free: Gilad Shalit
: Gilad Shalit * Gilad and Israel * Gilad * Jewish Soldier and Gilad * Kidnapped Soldier * Justice * Hostage * Bibi * Gilad Shalit * Netanyahu* Terrorism* Jewish * Hamas * Jew

Captured Israeli soldier 'held in boobytrapped room'

2007-06-27T23:58:00.000+10:00

Israeli television said today an Israeli soldier captured a year ago is being held in the southern Gaza Strip in an underground room inside a booby-trapped building.

Sergeant Gilad Shalit was grabbed by Palestinian gunmen in a cross-border raid into Israel from the Gaza Strip on June 25, 2006.

The report, aired on Israeli Channel 2, said Shalit is being held near Shaboura refugee camp, close to the town of Rafah in the southern part of the coastal territory.

The reporter said his information came from Hamas sources.

Israeli officials declined to comment and a militant source representing one of the three groups holding Shalit said the report is "speculation and imagination".

The television report said Shalit is being cared for by two captors with whom he has formed a "cordial" relationship, and he is being treated fairly.

Shalit's living quarters were described as a two-room underground store with enough supplies to last two weeks, accessible down a ladder through a 15-metre-deep shaft which the report said is lined with explosives.

It added that the captors receive supplies and newspaper cuttings every two weeks and that they have been ordered to take good care of their prisoner.

Last year Shalit's captors refused to accept a pair of spectacles sent by his parents because they feared they were embedded with miniature electronic devices.

Reference:
SMH: Captured Israeli soldier 'held in boobytrapped room'

Kipper tip to Barbara's_Tchatzkahs

Free Shalit Yes, But Not At Any Price

2007-06-26T20:59:00.000+10:00

There are some in the Israeli MSM that are trying to convince us that we have no choice, that we must pay any price that the Hamas asks in order to save Gil'ad Shalit.

I beg to disagree. The Jewish people weren't born yesterday. We are an ancient people and we have a long a bitter experience with kidnappers and other rogues. In general, our sages have said that we do not redeem captives for more than they are worth (see Gittin 45). There are other factors to be considered, but it is clear that giving in to the demands of the kidnappers will encourage more kidnappings. What's more, experience has shown that when Israel releases terrorists, the results are disastrous, as Yisrael Harel explains:

May 21, 1985 witnessed what has come to be known as the "Jibril deal". Some 1,115 terrorists were released in exchange for three Israeli soldiers who had been abducted in Lebanon. According to statistics published by the Israel General Security Service (Shabak, or Shin Bet), more than 40 percent of those released went on to resume terrorist operations including acts of murder. Those released in the Jibril deal also produced the Palestinian leadership that launched the 1989 intifada--that in many ways continues to this day.

With 22 years hindsight, that was a cancerous precedent. The terrorist organizations discovered Israel's soft belly: the inability to withstand the pressures exerted by the families of the abducted soldiers. Ever since, abductions have become routine: Israelis are kidnapped and Israeli governments, right- and left-wing, redeem the abductees with the wholesale release of terrorists. It is these frequent capitulations, especially in the Lebanon arena, that led Hassan Nasrallah in 2000 to the conclusion that Israel had lost the will to fight and could be likened in its weakness to a spider web.

We have to pray that God will give our leaders the wisdom to do what is good for the country. With all of the sympathy that I have for the Shalit family, we cannot have their personal interest take precedence over the interest of the entire nation.

[Cross posted on Cosmic X in Jerusalem]

Translation of Gilad Shalits audio message:On tape, Gilad 'urges' meeting demands

2007-06-26T14:50:00.000+10:00

Transcription of What Gilad said in English
Click read more to see it
By Reuters

GAZA - Following is the text of a statement by captive soldier Gilad Shalit, as heard in an audio tape released by his Palestinian captors in Gaza yesterday. Translation is by Reuters from the original Hebrew:

"I, the soldier Gilad, son of Noam Shalit, [am] held by the Khattab Shaheed Iz al-Din al-Qassam [the military wing of Hamas].
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"Mother and father, my sister and brother, friends in the Israel Defense Forces: I send you regards from jail and my longing for all of you.

"An entire year has passed with me in jail, and the state of my health is still deteriorating and I need extensive hospitalization.

"I am sorry for the lack of interest in my case and in the demands of Khattab al-Qassam on the part of the Israeli government and the army. It is clear that they must accede to these demands in order for me to be released from jail - especially as I was involved in a military operation, under orders, and was not a drug dealer.

"Just as I have parents, a mother and a father, the thousands of Palestinian detainees also have mothers and fathers who must have their sons returned.

"I have great faith that my government will take more of an interest in me and will accede to the demands of the mujahideen.

"Corporal Gilad Shalit."

References:
Haaretz: On tape, Gilad urges meeting demands

Free: Gilad Shalit: Gilad Shalit * Gilad and Israel * Gilad+Shalit+Video * Jewish Soldier and Gilad * Kidnapped Soldier * Gilad Shalit speaks * Gilad Shalit talks * Kidnapped Israeli * Gilad Shalit * IDF* Gilad Shalit tape* Jewish * Hamas * Jew

Gilad Shalit speaks from captivity (video)

2007-06-26T07:11:00.000+10:00

If the video fails to load click here:
Gilad Shalit speaks from captivity

Free: Gilad Shalit
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LGF: Palestinian War Crime: Gilad Shalit Tape Released

2007-06-26T07:08:00.000+10:00

Follow-up to earlier audio post by: Rafi G

Monday, June 25, 2007

Breaking News: Little Green Footballs: Palestinian War Crime: Gilad Shalit Tape Released

Palestinian War Crime: Gilad Shalit Tape Released

The Hamas thugs who kidnapped Israeli Cpl. Gilad Shalit have released an audiotape; and the craven Western media are universally shying away from the word “kidnapped” (the truth) in favor of “captured” (the terrorists’ preferred word): Hamas releases audio of captured Israeli.
BBC reporter Alan Johnston, however, was “kidnapped.”

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip - Hamas militants posted an audio message on Monday from an Israeli soldier captured a year ago at an army base near the Gaza Strip, the first sign of life from the young serviceman since he was seized.

In the message, posted on the Web site of Hamas’ military wing, Cpl. Gilad Shalit sent greetings to his family and said his health was failing. He also expressed disappointment in the “lack of interest” of the Israeli government in his fate.

“I have spent a full year in prison, and my health is still deteriorating, and I need a prolonged hospitalization. I regret the lack of interest on the part of the Israeli government and the Israel Defense Forces in my case and their refusal to meet the demands of the al-Qassam brigades,” he added. ...

“Just as I have parents, a mother and father, the thousands of Palestinian prisoners have mothers and fathers to whom their sons must be returned,” he said. “I have a great hope from my government that it show more interest in me and meet the demands of the mujahideen (captors).” ...

Shalit’s father, Noam, listened to the tape on Channel 2 television, asking the station to play it a second time for the soldier’s mother. He said it appeared that the statement was coerced.

“I imagine that it’s the same as the letter they dictated to him and doesn’t reflect his real state,” he said. “We want somebody independent to see him, to examine him and the conditions under which he is held, his medical condition of course and his mental (state).”

The Israeli human rights group B’tselem accused the captors of war crimes, noting their refusal to allow Red Cross workers to visit Shalit. But the militants holding the soldier insisted he was in good health and treated well.

B’tselem, with their appeasement and surrender philosophy, are one of the parties indirectly responsible for the situation that allowed Shalit to be kidnapped. Their complaint that the mujahideen haven’t allowed the Red Cross to see Shalit (!) is ludicrous beyond belief.

UPDATE at 6/25/07 8:23:19 am:

At Huffington Post, they had to turn off comments on their entry about the Shalit tape, so their vicious Jew-hating readers wouldn’t embarrass them again: Comments for Israeli Soldier Captured A Year Ago Heard On Audio Tape.

UPDATE at 6/25/07 8:53:13 am:

They haven’t turned off the comments after all; they just didn’t show up when I first visited. And the vicious haters are turning out in force. A representative comment:

Boobaloo:

I agree with you giginthesky. My point is we should not care about what happens to a jewish soldier ... he’s probably killed many innocent people in the name of Israel, he’s not innocent in any way. The only innocents are the civilians. Frankly, I dont think anyone does care about him, its just the media which has become a passive conduit for propaganda by pro-isreali and zionist lobbies.

Israel actually wanted peace If Israel actually wanted peace, there would’ve been peace a long time ago but, what Israel wants is all of Palestine and all of Lebanon. They can only have this via two methods: Genocide and constant war.

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Remember 1 year ago today?Two soldiers killed, one missing in Kerem Shalom terror attack

2007-06-25T02:44:00.000+10:00

Reprint of article from: 25 Jun 2006

PM Olmert: The State of Israel views the Palestinian Authority (PA) led by Chairman Abu Mazen and the Palestinian government as responsible for this event - with all this implies.

Communicated by the IDF Spokesman)

This morning (Sunday, 25 June 2006) in the course of an infiltration and attack by terrorists in the area of Kibbutz Kerem Shalom, an IDF officer and a soldier were killed, a soldier was abducted, and four others were wounded.

The soldiers killed have been identified as Lt. Hanan Barak, 20, of Arad and Staff-Sgt. Pavel Slutzker, 20, of Dimona. Cpl. Gilad Shalit is missing in action.

At 5:40 in the morning, terrorists from the Hamas and Popular Resistance Committees terror organizations infiltrated into Israel through a tunnel originating from the Rafah area, passing under the security fence to the area between the Kerem Shalom and Sufa crossings. The terrorists,operating under cover of mortar and anti-tank fire from within the Gaza Strip, attacked attacked an armored personnel carrier, an IDF tank and a watchtower. IDF forces returned fire, killing at least two terrorists.

This attack was carried out and spearheaded by senior members of the Hamas and authorized by the party's leadership.

The IDF holds the Palestinian Authority and the democratically elected Hamas government responsible for the attack and the fate of the missing soldier.

* * *

On June 26, IDF forces detonated the tunnel which was used during the terrorist infiltration into the Kerem Shalom area. IDF forces uncovered the opening of the tunnel inside a Palestinian house located about 350 meters from the fence. The length of the tunnel was about 650 meters.
References:
Israel MFA: Two soldiers killed, one missing in Kerem Shalom terror attack

On Anniversary Of Capture, ADL Urges International Community To Press For Immediate Release Of Israeli Soldiers

2007-06-25T02:36:00.000+10:00

New York, NY, June 22, 2007 - On the one-year anniversary of the kidnapping of an Israeli soldier by the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) called on human rights groups, the United Nations and the international community to speak out and demand his freedom, as well as that of two Israeli soldiers held captive by Hezbollah in Lebanon.

On June 25, 2006, Gilad Shalit, 20, was kidnapped by Hamas in an attack on a military installation on Israeli soil. Shalit remains in captivity in the Gaza Strip. Israel Defense Forces reservists Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev, kidnapped in a raid on Israel's northern border and taken into Lebanese territory by Hezbollah on July 12, 2006, also remain in captivity, their whereabouts and conditions unknown.
"The continued captivity of these young men after one year with no word as to their fate is unacceptable and a clear violation of international protocol," said Glen S. Lewy, ADL National Chair and Abraham H. Foxman, National Director. "The international community must demand their immediate and unconditional release."

In letters to the directors of Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and Human Rights First, ADL called on those groups to speak out and demand the release of the soldiers one year after their capture.

The League thanked U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for his previously speaking out on the issue and for meeting with families of the kidnapped soldiers. On the anniversary of Shalit's capture, Mr. Lewy and Mr. Foxman urged the Mr. Ban to "reinvigorate efforts" to demand the soldiers' release.

U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701, which set the terms of an Israeli-Hezbollah ceasefire in August 2006, calls for the "unconditional release" of the soldiers. The captors of Goldwasser and Regev have refused to provide any information to international relief agencies regarding their whereabouts or condition. Hezbollah and Hamas have also denied requests by the International Red Cross for access to the captives.

If you haven't checked out the Free Gilad Shalit Blog please do especially today

References:
ADL : On Anniversary Of Capture, ADL Urges International Community To Press For Immediate Release Of Israeli Soldiers.

The Anti-Defamation League, founded in 1913, is the world's leading organization fighting anti-Semitism through programs and services that counteract hatred, prejudice and bigotry.

MK Levy: Humanitarian Aid to Gaza in Exchange for Shalit

2007-06-25T00:41:00.001+10:00

From Israel National News

"We also have some humanitarian demands of our own," says MK Rabbi Yitzchak Levy, "namely, freedom for our captive soldier Gilad Shalit."

MK Levy, of the National Union party, does not rule out a priori humanitarian aide to Hamas-ruled Gaza, but says it must be made contingent upon the release of captive Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.

Monday will mark exactly one year since eight Hamas terrorists crawled through an underground tunnel from Gaza into Israel, killed two IDF soldiers and abducted Shalit from his tank. The enemy force entered Israel through a deep tunnel dug especially for the attack, and Shalit has not been heard from since.

"I assume the government will reach some kind of decision in the coming days regarding the opening of the crossings into Gaza," MK Levy told Arutz-7's Hebrew newsmagazine on Sunday morning. "This, in order to avoid a humanitarian crisis in Gaza where people die of disease and hunger."

"But we have some humanitarian demands of our own," Levy said. "I propose that the Government of Israel make its continued humanitarian aid contingent upon the release of Gilad Shalit. We must say: If you ignore the humanitarian need of his family, and of all Israel, and keep him with you, then we too will keep our aid from reaching Gaza."

Over the weekend, a bicycling event was held to remember Israel's three most recent captives - Shalit, Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev, the latter two of whom were kidnapped nearly a year ago into Lebanon by Hizbullah terrorists. In addition, some 500 people are taking part Sunday morning in a one-year anniversary rally for Shalit near the Knesset in Jerusalem.

One of the first victims of the Olso War was Rabbi Levy's 28-year-old daughter Ayelet HaShachar, a mother of a three-year old girl, who was killed in a car-bomb attack near the Machaneh Yehuda market in Jerusalem in November 2000.

Asked about the claim that the kidnappers are not controlled by the Hamas government, Rabbi Levy said,

"To say that they're just a bunch of wild guys who don't listen to orders - I don't accept that. The whole Hamas regime is the same way... The world understands this, and will therefore accept our demand. This is a perfect opportunity to take advantage of the terrorists' plight. There's no reason for us to be so good-hearted. If they don't want to run out of flour in a week or two, then let them give us back Gilad."

References:
Thanks to Arutz Sheva and Hillel Fendel for this article:

New hope for return of kidnapped soldier?

2007-06-25T00:33:00.000+10:00

TEL AVIV – Hamas’ takeover of the Gaza Strip is spurring hope for the safe return of an Israeli soldier kidnapped nearly a year ago by the fundamentalist Islamic group, even as it issued a terse warning to Israel not to harm its leaders "or forget about Gilad Shalit."

Shalit, then a 19-year-old army corporal, was captured last June 25 during a cross-border raid and smuggled into Gaza. He has been held by Hamas and two other organizations involved in the attack, in which two other Israelis were killed.

Israeli officials and family members are hoping that with Hamas now in control of Gaza, having prompted their rivals in Fatah to flee to the west bank following a bloody conflict last week, Hamas alone will be able to decide Shalit’s fate.

"There is a new situation and I hope Prime Minister Olmert will know how to take advantage of it," Noam Shalit told journalists at a graveside ceremony Sunday marking a year since his son was captured and his son’s comrades were killed.

It would be in Hamas’ interest, experts argue, to make a deal now.

"I think it’s a great opportunity for Gilad Shalit and for Alan Johnston for sure," said Lt. Col. (Res.) Anat Berko, a research fellow at the International Institute for Counter Terrorism at the Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya, referring to the BBC reporter who was abducted in Gaza in March. "I think Hamas wants to show that they are the boss, that they can make things happen and they are the ones with the key."

Analysts say that Hamas first must prove to nervous Gazans that it can deliver on a practical level by providing basic items such as gasoline, food, electricity, and water. This would mean securing even a minimum level of cooperation with Israel, which could be bolstered significantly by the release of Shalit.

Second, making a prisoner swap with Israel would boost Hamas’ popularity in Gaza as well as the west bank. The issue of Palestinian prisoners is a hugely emotional one on the Palestinian street, where almost every family has a relative or friend in an Israeli jail.

Hamas is likely to want to make a deal on prisoners before Israel makes one with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, a move that would strengthen Abbas and Fatah’s standing instead of that of Hamas.

Hamas, said Yaron Ezrahi, a political science professor at the Hebrew University, "is in the process of being maligned and criticized in an unprecedented way because the picture that dominates the international press is of the Hamas member with a mask, in a terrorist uniform, with a gun in his hand. On the other hand, they have never been in a position of having full responsibility for the daily lives of 1.5 million people."

Ezrahi said that "the rewards of releasing Shalit would not be higher in the future. I think Hamas right now after its military victory is definitely in the mood to try to cut political losses and public image losses they are suffering. I think they should have a very compelling motivation to release Shalit now."

In the west bank, Fatah spokesman Samir Nayfa suggested to the Palestinian media that a deal between Hamas and Israel could happen, even in unexpected ways. "Hamas might announce that Shalit disappeared amidst the state of chaos in Gaza Strip, or they might announce that he ran away," he said. "Hamas might go to the extreme of announcing that Fatah people helped Shalit run away."

At the same time, Hamas issued a warning on Saturday. "If any of Hamas’ leaders are harmed, Israel can forget about Gilad Shalit," a spokesman for Hamas’ armed wing, the Izz el-Din al-Qassam Brigades, told reporters.

The daily Ha’aretz cited security sources reporting that the Egyptians, who had been mediating with Israeli and Palestinian negotiators to broker a deal for Shalit, might resume efforts soon if the situation in Gaza does continue to wind down. They had stopped in recent weeks as the fighting between Fatah and Hamas intensified, the sources said.

David Baker, an Israeli government spokesman, told JTA that Shalit’s release is still very much at the top of the Israeli agenda. "Israel will not relent in its efforts to allow for the safe return of our soldier Gilad Shalit," he said. "These efforts continue unabated."

Observers say that if Hamas does strike a deal to swap prisoners with Israel, it also would break Israel’s self-imposed taboo on talking to Hamas, even if it is through the Egyptians.

Berko, the Herzliya center researcher and author of the recent book "The Path to Paradise: The Inner World of Suicide Bombers and Their Dispatchers," said that despite Israel’s desires to strengthen the secular Fatah movement over Hamas, the time may have come to realize it can only influence things so far.

"I think this is not the time to deal with strengthening or weakening sides. We saw Israel cannot predict or create all the processes in the Middle East. We saw it in Lebanon and we are seeing it all over the world," she said, referring to the surge of Islamic fundamentalism of which Hamas is a part. "As time passes it will become harder to secure Shalit’s release. Now something has changed and we have to take the opportunity and speak with the devil," she said

Reference:
Thanks to New Jersey Jewish Standard and Dina Kraft

Prayer for the Deliverance of the Captured Israeli Soldiers

2007-06-25T00:01:00.000+10:00

It has been 1 year since the kidnapping of Gilad Shalit.
Below this appears a prayer written by Rishon Le'Sion Chief Sephardic Rabbi of Israel, Shelomo Amar.

(Psalm readings: Chapters 70, 13, 142, 126)

The following passage contains the word of G_d please treat it with respect and appropriateness.
[click read more...]

Prayer for the Deliverance of the Captured Israeli Soldiers

MAY it be Your will, Lord our God and God of our fathers, that these Psalms which we have read before You today should come to You favorably, and be accepted before you as if King David Your anointed one – peace be on him – had said them himself. Please take action for the sake of Your Holy names which are written in them, and which are alluded to in them, and accept with mercy and favor our prayers and requests, so that our supplications reach You. Have pity, show concern and extend mercy to the captives, Ehud ben Malka Goldwasser; Eldad ben Tovah Regev; and Gilad ben Aviva Shalit, and save them, showing redemption and mercy, together with all captives and prisoners from Your nation Israel.

MAY the One who can liberate captives release them from their detention, deliver them from captivity to liberty, from tyranny to redemption, and from gloom to brightness, and restore them to complete health – a healing of the soul and of the body – and revitalize their spirit, reinvigorate their strength, and help them in happiness and joy; then they will be strengthened and healed and will have eternal happiness.

MAY the merit of the prayers, the cries, and the supplications of the multitudes who plead for them all over the world stand for them as a shield and a protection, freeing them from their captivity. Please tear asunder any negative judgments. May all their merits be presented before You, the Blessed One, and all that they have achieved and done for the sake of our nation and our heritage. Tear up their verdicts for the merit of the Holy Name that is alluded to in the initial Hebrew letters of the phrase “Accept the prayer of your nation; fortify us, purify us, You who are so awesome.”

MAY the words of this scriptural verse (Isaiah 53:10) be fulfilled for them: “God’s captives will return and come to Zion in joy; eternal happiness will be on their heads, they will be invested with joy and happiness, and sorrow and anxiety will be banished.” May this happen very soon!

Translation by Rabbi Mayer Waxman, Director of Synagogue Services, Orthodox Union
Edited by David Olivestone, Director of Communications, Orthodox Union

Gilad Shalit is a corporal in the Israel Defense Forces. He comes from
Mitzpe Hila in the Western Galilee, and holds dual Israeli and French citizenship. Gilad is the first Israeli soldier captured by Palestinians since Nachson Wachsman in 1994. Early on Sunday morning, June 25, 2006, Shalit was kidnapped by Palestinian Arab terrorists who attacked an army post in Israel after crossing the border from Gaza via a tunnel near the Kerem Shalom crossing at the south Gaza Strip border. During the morning attack, two Israel Defense Force soldiers were killed and four others wounded.

Thanks to International Sephardic Leadership Council

Hamas: 'No change in Schalit's captors' demands'

2007-06-24T22:29:00.000+10:00

"There is no change in the demands of Gilad Schalit's captors," Abu Obeida, spokesman for Hamas's armed wing, was quoted as saying on Sunday morning.

Obeida added that negotiations over the release of the captured IDF soldier were halted two months ago and since then there had been no messages conveyed by Israel via the Egyptian mediators, Israel Radio reported.

"We urge Israel to deal with the issue quickly because this foot dragging is not in Israel's interests if it wants to protect Gilad Schalit," said Obeida.

Bagelblogger: No Change? Surely you would need to check with his captors? Unless of course we finally accept the obvious, Hamas has been behind the kidnapping all along.
Instead of Israel accepting thinly veiled threats from Hamas terrorists, Hamas need to know the dire consequences if Gilad Shalit is harmed. Each and every leader of Hamas needs to know they are directly responsible for Shalit's safety.

Terrorist organisations must be held accountable.

References:
Hamas: 'No change in Schalit's captors' demands'

Zahar: Hamas willing to renew talks over release of Shalit

2007-06-24T22:08:00.000+10:00

Top Hamas official Mahmoud Zahar said Saturday that Hamas is willing to renew negotiations over the release of abducted Israel Defense Forces soldier Gilad Shalit in exchange for an Israeli release of Palestinian prisoners.

"If Israel wants to begin at the point where we stopped, there is a possibility to complete the exchange deal", Zahar said.

Shalit was captured in a cross-border raid by Hamas and two smaller militant groups in June last year. So far, Egyptian mediation attempts to exchange Shalit for Palestinian prisoners have failed.

IDF reservists Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev were subsequently abducted by Hezbollah on July 12 near the border with Lebanon, sparking the Second Lebanon War.

Noam Shalit, Gilad Shalit's father, said Saturday that he hopes he won't go through another "nightmarish" year, and called on the government "to pick up the pace in bringing back the children."

Shalit spoke at a ceremony in Rosh Hanikra following a cycle rally in the western Galilee, organized to show support for the abducted Israel Defense Forces soldiers and their families.

Karnit Goldwasser, wife of Ehud Goldwasser, called on newly elected president, Shimon Peres and Defense Minister Ehud Barak to act for the quick release of the abducted troops, "and not to let apathy kill them."

Some 3,000 cyclists took part in the rally Saturday morning, under the banner of "stop apathy for the sake of the kidnapped soldiers."

The cyclists began at the Regba shopping center situated between the coastal towns of Acre and Nahariya, and finished at Rosh Hanikra.

The rally marks almost a year since Shalit was captured by Palestinian militants.

Bagelblogger: Could it be any more clearer that Hamas is in full control of the situation? The pretense and fabrication that Hamas doesn't have complete control of the where abouts of Gilad Shalit needs to be realised by the world.
Why is it a organisation which has been declared as a terrorist entity, which is so obviously behind the kidnapping of Gilad Shalit is able to exist in any form?

Why isn't the entire world denouncing this crime? Why is Hamas left to commit atrocity after atrocity under the pretense of crimes being committed by 'uncontrollable splinter groups'. The time has come, any country, state or administration that is involved in terrorism needs to be confronted now.

Have we not learned the lessons of not taking firm action and holding countries that harbor, train and encourage terrorism to be accountable.

Gilad Shalit - one year later

2007-06-24T19:49:00.000+10:00

By Rafi G

Tomorrow is the one year anniversary of the abduction of Gilad Shalit.

On June 25, 2006, Palestinian militants breeched the Israeli border and attacked a military outpost. They abducted Gilad Shalit and, in the process, killed two other IDF soldiers and injured three more.

Since the abduction, we have read in the news about offers for a trade. The terms of the deal as suggested by the ruling Hamas leaders has been ridiculous. They have demanded thousands of prisoners in exchange for Shalit, and they will not even give any information as to Shalit's condition prior to any deal.

We have occasionally been told, via the media, that a deal is imminent and we can expect good news "within 2 weeks." I can remember about 4 different times over the year that our government has counted on the promises of PA President Mahmoud Abbas to declare that the Shalit situation will be over in a matter of days.

The days pass, the weeks pass, the months pass, and all we are left with is more promises by Abbas and Gilad Shalit remains in captivity.

With the recent Hamas coup of Gaza, Mahmoud Abbas will obviously not even be able to make promises that he cannot keep. He will not be able to give us the hope and optimism we desire.

We like to fool ourselves.

We think that as long as the moderates are in control, we are ok. Everything will work out. Abbas will work it out and get us Shalit back under reasonable terms. As long as we have someone there making promises to us, even though those promises will never be kept, we remain calm. We remain optimistic that Abbas will come through.

Abbas will never come through. I say that loud and clear. He has never come through. He is not a moderate. He has done nothing for us and, even worse, he has done nothing to advance the goals of the Palestinian people. He has gotten a lot of goodwill gestures from Israel, but in the 2.5 years he has been President of the PA, he has not advanced their situation at all.

We have our hopes and desires. As long as Abbas was willing to make us promises, empty as they might be, we were willing to have expectations. The problem with that is that as the time passes, our expectations result in constant disappointment.

Maybe now that Hamas is in complete control of Gaza and Abbas does not even have the ability to make promises, we will stop taking hope from him. Hopefully we will begin to look for real solutions to obtaining Shalit's freedom (and Goldwasser and Regev in Lebanon, but that will be for another post) and stop relying on false hope and people who do not have the ability to come through.

And we, the people who cannot do anything except pressure the government, and even that does not help with the crowd of selfish politicians currently filling the seats of power who ignore the calls of the public, should keep reminding the government of its responsibilities, and keep pressuring the government in any way possible to bring this situation to its resolution.

But the fall of Abbas should also be a reminder that "we have nobody to rely on except our Father in heaven."

As long as Abbas was making promises, we could forget about Hashem and rely on Abbas and Olmert. Now that they can no longer make any promises, the time is ripe to remember that really we should be relying on Hashem to bring this to a resolution. There is nobody here reliable to rely on. We must increase our prayers and our good deeds in Shalit's merit.

(this post has been cross posted at the Life in Israel blog)

The Hamas Coup and Repurcussions for Gilad Shalit

2007-06-22T15:17:00.000+10:00

With the reality of the Hamas takeover of Gaza sinking in and the broader consequences having been addressed, thoughts are now turning to issues such as Gilad Shalit's captivity, which will reach its one year anniversary on June 25. Needless to say, there are all kinds of assumptions:

Analysts say that Hamas first must prove to nervous Gazans that it can deliver on a practical level by providing basic items such as gasoline, food, electricity and water. This would mean securing even a minimum level of cooperation with Israel, which could be bolstered significantly by the release of Shalit.

Second, making a prisoner swap with Israel would boost Hamas' popularity in Gaza as well as the West Bank. The issue of Palestinian prisoners is a hugely emotional one on the Palestinian street, where almost every family has a relative or friend in an Israeli jail.

The motivation for Hamas to get good PR is balanced by the anger they would generate among Gazans if they did not get a large number of prisoner releases in exchange.

On the other hand, is Israel really willing at this point to negotiate with Hamas and as a result help mitigate the world's horror at the Hamas coup and strengthen their position in Gaza--while at the same time realizing that obtaining the release of Shalit could provide Olmert with some good PR of his own.

Bottom line: Gilad Shalit remains as much a pawn as ever.

End of Days Talkspot: Israel Pulls Out of Lebanon

2007-06-22T09:26:00.001+10:00

Muse, of "Shiloh Musings" blog fame, makes a very valid point in her previous post. One that I'm sure we all agree with, and that is, "We mustn't forget all of the other Israelis held by the enemy. Some were captured over 20 years ago."

Thank you Muse for this reminder to us all that we must never forget these captured, and, or, missing Israeli's, and their brave families.

This site has been dedicated to one, in particular, of the captured Israeli's, a brave, young IDF soldier, Cpl. Gilad Shalit, in the hope that he will soon be returned safely to his waiting family, but not in the disregard for all other missing Israeli's.

This blog is dedicated to all those who are still missing, and to their suffering families, in the hope, that G-D willing, many others, may still be alive, and might return home, safely, and soon, after the horrors of their captivity.

We must never lose the hope (HaTikva), nor should we ever forget to remember, these dear souls, and their families.

Perhaps this blog, dedicated to one young Jewish boy, can be a reminder of all the other captives, in addition to Gilad, who's families are still watching, and believing, for their loved ones return.

Thank you Muse, for reminding us that, this isn't only about a single Israeli soldier, but, should rather serve as a continual reminder to us, of ALL the missing Israeli's, and their loved one's who still long for their safe return.

Our hearts bleed for the families of Ehud Goldwasser, and Eldad Regev, and all the others, who remain, yet unaccounted for. In this hope, I thought I would link an article from DEBKA, which I had posted, last year, following the withdrawal of troops from Lebanon, on the morning of Yom Kippur's eve.

We must remember Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev, as they too, have been held captive, as has Gilad, for almost a year now. As this anniversary of their capture nears, may we do everything within our abilities, to secure their release. We must, "Never forget" !!

Please click read more to read article below:

Original article: DEBKA

On: October 01, 2006

Read original article here: http://www.debka.com/article.php?aid=1215

Israel Quits Lebanon Leaving Hizballah Back in the Saddle under UN Auspices:

DEBKAfile Special Military Report

October 1, 2006, 10:55 AM (GMT+02:00)

DEBKAfile’s military sources saw the Iast Israeli soldier quit Lebanon before dawn of Oct. 1, Yom Kippur eve, leaving in captivity Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev, the two soldiers whose abduction by Hizballah provoked the 34-day Lebanon war on July 12.

Only one third of the 15,000 international peacekeepers the UN Security Council pledged for an expanded UNIFIL has in fact been deployed in South Lebanon. And even that paltry force has made no effort to stop Hizballah restoring its presence and replenishing its stocks of rockets and missiles to points in South Lebanon within firing range of Israel. In most ways, therefore, UN Security Council Resolution 1701 of Aug. 14 is a dead letter.

While withdrawing the bulk of its force gradually, Israel kept the last units behind in a futile effort to persuade UNIFIL commanders to uphold key provisions of the resolution. They refused even the minimal demand to restrict Hizballah’s military movements along the Israeli border. They claimed they could only act with the permission of the Lebanese government. By finally giving way on this point, the Israeli government accepted the determination that UNIFIL is the instrument of the Lebanese government - not the enforcer of UN resolutions or Israeli security.

This concession makes nonsense of the claim that the most important gain of the Lebanon operation was the removal of Hizballah’s fighting forces from access to the Israeli border. This claim was made in a desperate attempt by Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert, defense minister Amir Peretz and chief of staff Lt.-Gen Dan Halutz, to justify the war and its losses.

Looking slightly further ahead, Israel’s policy-makers had better hurry up and form a plan to meet an exacerbated threat from Lebanon, the possible displacement of the Fouad Siniora government in Beirut with a pro-Syrian, Hizballah-dominated administration. This further deterioration in Israel’s national security situation is far from being a remote hypothesis.

Hizballah leader Hassan Nasrallah used the war to forge alliances with the Lebanese parliamentary speaker Nabih Berri, head of the rival Shiite movement Amal, and the Christian Maronite strongman Michel Aoun. This bloc intends to make a bid to install a pro-Syrian government after Ramadan is over next month.

Our sources in Beirut report a last-minute US-French initiative to frustrate this development. Siniora had his interior minister Ahmed Fatfat posted decree No. 2403 for Lebanon’s five intelligence and security agencies to pool their intelligence data and so provide his government and national army with the means of asserting control over national security. Two pro-Syrian officers, General Security chief Wafic Jezzini, and Director-General of Internal Security forces, Maj.-Gen Ashraf Rifi, stamped hard on this decree. The Siniora government was thus denied a key resource for dominating the country at large, not just the South, and is more vulnerable than ever to a hostile push.

As for Israel’s policy-makers, their handling of the bargaining with UNIFIL was as muddled, vacillating and feeble as their conduct of the Lebanon war itself. By accepting the Aug. 14 truce, they agreed to handing over the Lebanese-Israeli border to an international peacekeeping force without teeth; its rules of engagement are so constrictive that without Lebanese government authorization its members may not fire a single shot - even when necessary to prevent Hizballah moving back to its former aggressive positions or smuggling in fresh supplies of weapons – both of which are out-and-out violations of the same Resolution 1701 which mandated its own deployment.

By removing its troops in keeping with that same resolution, Israel has bargained away its last option for extracting information about the fate of the two soldiers seized by Hizballah; Red Cross access has brusquely refused.

In the view of DEBKAfile’s political sources, the last IDF units were kept in Lebanon after the truce for no discernible military or diplomatic purpose but to lull the Israeli public into not looking too closely at their leaders’ feeble negotiating stance and assuming Israel was still a strong player on the Lebanese scene. By Yom Kippur eve, most people were caught up in seasonal pursuits and less inclined to continue their painful in-depth calculation of the war’s net results.

Those results can be summed up in four negative developments which the Olmert government failed to thwart:

1. The wholesale smuggling through Syria of fresh weapons supplies to Hizballah from Syria and Iran, which neither the Lebanese army nor UNIFIL is lifting a finger to stop despite an explicit UN embargo. The heads of Israel’s government neglected to draw lessons from the failed deal on the Gaza crossings and the Philadelphi route, which never prevented arms flowing freely from Egyptian Sinai to Palestinian terrorists, notably the ruling Hamas.

Syria stays technically in the clear of the UN arms embargo by setting up huge arms dumps on its border with Lebanon, ready to be pushed across at a moment’s notice by land.

2. Expanded UNIFIL, which Israeli foreign minister Tzipi Livni did her best to present as a force with teeth, rather than monitoring Hizballah’s movements and disarming its combatants, is busy monitoring the feuds of Lebanese political and military factions.

3. These international units refrain from entering S. Lebanese villages. There is therefore no hindrance to Hizballah re-occupying those villages and restoring its strongholds within range of the Israeli border. The UN force is not setting up checkpoints to control banned traffic in the South. At best, the units are using makeshift roadblocks which go up for an hour at most before being removed and leaving Hizballah a free field for moving around the South.

4. The naval blockade against illegal arms imports, purportedly maintained by French, Italian, German and Greek war vessels, is about effective as UNIFIL’s ephemeral roadblocks. Their governments consented to the vessels being barred from entering Lebanese territorial waters. And so a strip of ocean 12 miles wide up to the Lebanese coast remains wide open for Hizballah’s arms ships to freely ply the route between Syrian and Lebanese ports.

Anxious to turn disaffected popular attention away from Hizballah’s recovery under the benign auspices of the UN’s European contingents, Israeli ministers and military chiefs have been debating out loud the need to carry out a major ground operation in the Gaza Strip, whence Qassam missiles continue to be fired into Israeli communities and where the Palestinians are building up their arms stocks, unhindered by international monitors and Egyptian police.

Related articles:

Israel’s Real Danger

European Lebanon Force Is Cast as Shield for Iranian-Hizballah Military Buildup

Nasrallah Is Already Carving out Lebanon’s Future

Link

Remembering all the victims of terror attacks against Israel

2007-06-21T19:04:00.001+10:00

We mustn't forget all of the other Israelis held by the enemy. Some were captured over 20 years ago.

Gaza Infighting Renewed, Causing Increased Concerns for Shalit

2007-06-20T10:43:00.000+10:00

This article, from October 03, 2006, ran on IsraelNationalNews.com. The article addresses the dangerous situation created by renewed infighting among the rival Palestinian factions of Hamas and Fatah loyalists, and it's potential implications on kidnapped Israeli soldier, Cpl. Gilad Shalit.

Now, just as then, only to a far broader and potentially more dangerous degree, the infighting, and resulting overthrow of Gaza, by Hamas, has everyone especially concerned for the safety and return of Gilad Shalit. We must do everything within our abilities to ensure that pressure is applied at all levels to initiate action directed toward the immediate release of Gilad.

There is no time to waste. Gilad is a pawn in a vicious game of hostage taking and pro-longed blackmail by these so-called "Palestinian" terrorist thugs. They are not "freedom fighters", or "militants", or "soldiers". They are vicious, cold blooded killers, capable of any, and every evil act, from "homicide bombers", to kidnapping, to "blackmail", and most certainly, brutal murder. I cannot stress enough the urgency of this situation. Please get involved !! Do it because it's right !! Do it now !! Please !!

Please read the original article below:

Latest Report from IsraelNationalNews.com:

Gaza Infighting Renewed, Causing Increased Concerns for Shalit

11:05 Oct 03, '06 / 11 Tishrei 5767

by Hana Levi Julian

Renewed clashes between Fatah and Hamas left three dead and at least 22 wounded in Gaza Monday night. Israeli officials are concerned about how the situation impacts IDF Cpl. Gilad Shalit.

The inter-faction violence which began Sunday escalated into what Palestinian Authority officials were concerned might once again raise the threat of a civil war, especially with the realization of the large number of weapons available in Gaza. Terrorists have smuggled thousands of arms across the border from Egypt in recent months.

Israeli officials, meanwhile, are concerned that the sharp increase in fighting between Hamas and Fatah gunmen in Gaza will negatively impact efforts towards obtaining Shalit’s release.

The soldier was abducted on June 25th by Hamas terrorists in a raid on an IDF outpost near the Kerem Shalom border crossing with Gaza. His whereabouts and condition are still unknown.

Two Fatah members were kidnapped by unidentified gunmen in Khan Younis, an attack the faction blamed on Hamas. Three people were wounded in a firefight at Shifa Hospital in Gaza between the family of a dead Fatah gunmen and Hamas police officers. Fatah gunmen killed a waiter in Jericho when he refused to close his restaurant and comply with a strike organized by the minority faction to protest violence in Gaza. Two of PA Deputy Prime Minister Nasser al-Shaer’s bodyguards were shot by unidentified attackers in Shechem, according to the Associated Press. Al-Shaer was not present at the time.

Some 5,000 Fatah protestors in Rafah called for the resignation of PA Interior Minister Said Siyam and demanded the Hamas-led police force disband, leading to more violence. One police officer and a demonstrator were killed and at least 18 others wounded in the clash between police and protestors, according to Reuters.

Nabil Amr, a top aide to President Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) said in Ramallah that Abbas was ‘seriously considering’ forming an emergency government or calling early elections to put an end to the ongoing conflicts and bloodshed. “Decisions should be taken in a short period of time,” he said.

The two factions have been battling for control of the PA government since Hamas took over from Fatah as majority party after a landslide victory at the polls in January.

An announcement last month by leaders of both factions that a new unity government would be formed proved meaningless after Hamas insisted it would never agree to formally recognize Israel’s right to exist, one of the demands of the Quartet Forum.

The United States, Russia, the European Union and the United Nations, which comprise the Quartet, have also demanded that Hamas disarm and renounce violence as well as promise to uphold agreements signed by the previous PA administration.

Despite a statement released a week ago by Hamas officials that the impasse between Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh and Abbas would be overcome within two weeks, little progress has been made.

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End of Days Talkspot: SHALIT IN GOOD HEALTH

2007-06-19T15:09:00.000+10:00

End of Days Talkspot: SHALIT IN GOOD HEALTH

The terrorist group, "The People’s Resistance Committee", in Gaza, were quoted in this article, posted on IsraelNationalNews.com, back in January 2007, to have claimed, "Gilad Shalit is in good health."

Please continue to pray for the safe return of the kidnapped Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit !!!

Please read original article below:

Terrorist Group: Shalit In Good Health

Original post: IsraelNationalNews.com

On: Jan 09, '07 / 19 Tevet 5767

The People’s Resistance Committee in Gaza claimed Tuesday that kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit is in good health. The terrorist group claimed that Shalit’s kidnappers are ready to care for him for years to come.

Gilad Shalit was kidnapped over six months ago while on patrol near Gaza.

His captors are requesting the release of over one thousand terrorists in exchange for his freedom.

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End of Days Talkspot: Kidnapped Shalit Caught in a PA Power Struggle

2007-06-19T12:44:00.000+10:00

This is an older article, from IsraelNationalNews.com, on Gilad Shalit's on-going, desperate plight, which I had posted, back in January 2007.

Original Post: IsraelNN.com
By: Hana Levi Julian
On: January 18, 2007 / 28 Tevet 5767

I just wanted to take a moment to say, what a wonderful idea this blog is. A blog dedicated to the righteous effort, to bring the continued, desperate, plight of Gilad Shalit, to the attention of those, who are in a position, to secure his release, is a dynamic undertaking, and worthy of our best efforts.

As we approach the one year anniversary of Gilad's capture, by terrorist thugs, we must do everything within our abilities to bring him home safely, to his loved ones.

I would like to thank, Mr. Bagel, of "Bagel Blogger" blog fame, and all the other fantastic co-authors of this newly launched blog, "Free Gilad Shalit", and I would also like to encourage everyone, who visits this blog, to get involved. Every effort is greatly appreciated, and desperately needed at this time.

Please read my earlier post below:

Kidnapped Shalit Caught in a PA Power Struggle

Original article on:IsraelNationalNews.com
On: Jan 18, '07 / 28 Tevet 5767
by: Hana Levi Julian

IDF Cpl. Gilad Shalit [pictured] has become a pawn in the power struggle between the Fatah and Hamas factions, charges a third terrorist group, which participated in his capture last June.

The Army of Islam said in a statement Wednesday that Shalit is in Hamas’ sole custody at present, adding that the group led by Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh is using the hostage in its bid to retain control of the government.

Israel has agreed several times to a prisoner swap deal brokered by Egyptian intelligence officials with Shalit’s captors, only to have it called off at the last minute by Hamas.

The primary bone of contention between Israel and Hamas rests on the issue of which prisoners to release and how the swap for Shalit will be handled. Israel wants Shalit freed before it hands over the terrorist prisoners, and Hamas is refusing to do so. Hamas has also demanded the release of prisoners which Israel has said it will never free, due to their long-time status and the severity of their crimes.

“The issue of the captured soldier has become a political case for the sake of narrow factional interests,” read the statement. “Muslims are being prevented from gaining their freedom because of Fatah and because of Hamas.”

Army of Islam terrorists contend that when Shalit was captured last year, an agreement had been made between the three groups involved in the raid that there would be no movement on the soldier’s fate – toward freedom or death – while there was still a chance the Israelis would come through with a prisoner swap.

Now the group says both Hamas, and the Fatah faction headed by PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen), are using the issue of the offer by Israel to fight each other, rather than focus on freeing PA prisoners.

“Either Fatah uses it to get at Hamas, or Hamas uses it to get at Fatah,” accused the third terrorist group, which urged that Hamas allow the PA Prisoner Affairs Minister the authority to make the decisions and bring the parley to an end.

After numerous meetings between the two factions failed to produce a coalition unity government in the PA, Abbas finally announced last month that he was calling for new elections. Abbas' announcement reignited the bloody street battles between Fatah and Hamas terrorists that began almost a year ago, after Hamas won control of the PA government in a landslide.

As the internal PA violence intensifies, once again people on both sides of the Gaza border speculate whether “this time” the PA will break apart in an outright civil war.

Some 30 PA residents have been killed in the fighting since the new elections were announced, and Shalit remains in captivity.

End of Days Talkspot: Kidnapped Shalit Caught in a PA Power Struggle

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Report: Israel offered deal for Schalit

2007-06-18T02:50:00.000+10:00

Israel has offered to remove the economic embargo on Hamas if kidnapped IDF soldier Cpl. Gilad Schalit is freed and Kassam rocket attacks stop, the London-based Arabic newspaper Al-Hayat reported on Sunday morning.

The message was reportedly conveyed to the Islamic group via Arab mediators.

A Hamas source in the Gaza Strip was pessimistic about the seriousness of the proposal, telling Al-Hayat that it was an Israeli attempt to "put out the feelers" on the now Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip.

He said that Israel had proposed a removal of the embargo, which has been in place since the Palestinian Legislative Council elections in January 2006, allowing the delivery of merchandise to Gaza.

However, according to the report, Israel remained steadfast in its refusal to transfer frozen tax revenues or other funds in exchange for Schalit.

On Thursday, diplomatic sources said that in light of the current infighting in Gaza between Fatah and Hamas, the frequency of negotiations over Schalit's release had gone down.

According to the sources, contacts between Hamas and Egypt - who has been serving as mediator between Hamas and Israel - would only resume once the situation in Gaza stabilized.

Meanwhile, the Hamas source added that kidnapped BBC reporter Alan Johnston would be freed by this weekend. He said that the kidnappers, who belong to the Durmush clan, recently contacted Hamas, who threatened that if Johnston were not released within 48 hours Hamas would use force.

Another Hamas official said that Johnston, who has been held since March, would be freed soon.

"All I can say is that Alan will be free very soon," Islam Shahwan, spokesman for Hamas in Gaza, said Sunday.

However, Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri, downplayed hopes for his quick release, saying, "there is nothing new yet regarding Alan."

Bagelblogger: I find the timing of this announcement just doesn't sit well with the events on the ground. Are we witnessing the Arab media trying to write the narrative fo the weeks ahead?

Reference:
JPost: Report: Israel offered deal for Schalit

Hamastan Roundup

2007-06-17T23:44:00.000+10:00

You have to appreciate the irony of this, especially since I've been saying all along about them much of what the Pals are now saying about each other:

Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas on Saturday rejected a request by the head of the Arab League to meet with supreme Hamas leader Khaled Meshal, an Abbas aide said.

Abbas received a call from Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa, who offered to arrange such a meeting, said the aide, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Abbas vehemently turned down the offer, the aide said.

Earlier Saturday, Abbas adviser Yasser Abed Rabbo told a news conference that the president will not engage in a dialogue with killers, referring to Hamas.

It was just peachy meeting with Hamas when they were only the killers of Jews. But now that they are the killers of Palestinians, well, that's a different story.

And the truths just keep on coming. Hamas has suddenly discovered the means to release BBC reporter Alan Johnston, whom they've been holding in the first place.

The captors of kidnapped journalist Alan Johnston have promised to release the British Broadcasting Corp. correspondent within 24 hours, a source close to the negotiations said Friday.

Hamas' armed wing issued a statement Friday, saying it was in an advanced stage of negotiations and "begun practical steps to secure [Johnston's] release."

In Damascus, Hamas political leader Khaled Meshal said he was in contact with Hamas operatives in Gaza to secure the release of Johnston.

[...] Johnston, 45, was snatched in Gaza three months ago by a group believed to have links to Hamas, and a message purporting to be from his captors has demanded the release of Islamic prisoners, including a cleric being held in Britain.

Translation: "Holy crap, our PR is bad after murdering all those Fatah guys and civilians. Let's throw the infidels a bone to shut them up."

Meantime, the West Bank Palestinians apparently look down their noses on the Gazan Palestinians. Wow. Even the Pals don't like the Pals.

Ramallah residents Thursday dismissed the possibility of Hamas taking over the West Bank. In Gaza, "there are tribes and clans like in the Jahiliyyah [pre-Islam] era," said one, Qassem. "Here, in the West Bank, we're more civilized, educated. It's a different nation, not like in Gaza."

And here is a comment on the Hamas military methods (along with that infamous mercy, justice, and tolerance thrown in):

"They're using the same methods as the Israelis, and even worse," a senior Palestinian source said. "They declare an area a closed military zone and shoot anyone who goes out into the street. Hamasniks strip Fatah men they capture, humiliate and beat them. They go from door to door with lists to hunt down Fatah people and execute them."

Fatah's military defeat was mainly caused by the split in the organization, he said: "All the forces are identified with Fatah, but each force fought independently against Hamas, which was united and better trained."

Fatah officials in the West Bank spoke with contempt about Hamas in Gaza. "Let's see how they manage now, after they've won, running things like water and power from Israel," one official said. "How will they cooperate with Israel over the border crossings?"

Yes, the world is going to wait for Gaza to sink into the mire. But here's the thing: Hamas has already proven itself adept at smuggling cash, weapons, and munitions into Gaza. Now that they control the border crossings previously run by the corrupt Fatah thugs, will it be an open faucet? Will Egypt continue to turn a blind eye to the arming of Hamas?

Iran shows no sign of turning off the money spigot any time soon. I'm not going to jump on the "Wait for Hamas to crash and burn" bandwagon. I think that they have just managed to subjugate an entire people. They're rounding up weapons from anyone outside Hamas. The first step in a dicatatorship: Remove the opposition party. Second step: Disarm the populace. Third step: Initiate your new laws, enforced by your thugs, who are now the only ones in your state allowed to bear arms. Hamas has initiated or completed all of these steps.

Watch for the Islamic theocracy to arise from the ashes of Gaza. The people are used to being subjugated by their leaders. They will bow just as easily under the Hamas yoke, particularly after we see a few public executions and beatings for "un-Islamic" activity.

This is a bad, bad, bad thing for Israel, the region, and the world, as I've said several times already. The U.S. and EU are now going to pressure Israel into easing up on the West Bank to make Hamas look bad. Well, PIJ is still in the West Bank, and so is Al Aqsa, and so is Hamas, and the PFLP. They're still trying to launch terror attacks. And they're still shooting, stoning, and knifing any Israeli that happens to be in the path of a terrorist with a stone, a knife, or a gun.

The regional balance has been completely altered. Iran has its front in Gaza, ready to go at a moment's notice, in concert with its front in Lebanon. And then there's Syria, waiting to jump in as well.

Dangerous times.

Noam Shalit fears son's fate in light of Gaza chaos

2007-06-14T16:38:00.000+10:00

Father of kidnapped IDF solder Gilad Shalit, who has been held in Gaza for almost a year, says family has not received any information regarding his son

Internal clashes between Fatah and Hamas in Gaza have aroused concern for the fate of kidnapped IDF soldier Gilad Shalit.

Gilad's father, Noam told Ynet on Thursday that his family was completely in the dark regarding his son's well-being.

"We did not receive any information regarding the stance of the organizations that are holding him, if they are even still relevant," Shalit said, adding that he did not get any information from sources who have been holding negotiations with the kidnappers, such as Egypt.

June 25 will mark one year since Shalit was captured by terrorists who infiltrated Israel and attacked an IDF post in the southern Gaza Strip, near Kibbutz Kerem Shalom.

Over the past few days, the situation in Gaza has continued to intensify, with Hamas taking over all the buildings overlooking Fatah's Preventive Security Service headquarters in Gaza City, and claiming to have taken over part of the compound on Thursday.

Over three weeks ago, Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit said that negotiations for the release of Shalit were put on hold, due to the shaky security situation and the violence in the Gaza Strip.

"Talks were put on hold for now, following internal Palestinian complications and tensions that were created," Aboul Gheit said.

Reference:
Ynet news: Noam Shalit fears son's fate in light of Gaza chaos
By Ahiya Raved

Free: Gilad Shalit
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Egyptian official: Israel behind stagnation in Shalit talks

2007-06-07T16:45:00.000+10:00

Negotiations for the release of kidnapped Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit have stagnated because of Israel's "stubbornness," a senior Egyptian official told the London-based Arabic newspaper al-Hayat.

"The stagnation is the result of Israel's stubbornness and refusal to be flexible. When the concessions are only made by one of the sides, this is not a negotiation, but a dictating of terms," he stated. (Roee Nahmias) [END]

Ynet News: Egyptian official:Israel behind stagnation in Shalit talks

Minister Boim: Gaza ceasefire hinges on release of Shalit

2007-05-29T16:47:00.000+10:00

Immigration and Absorption Minister Zeev Boim said Tuesday that Israel would agree to a ceasefire with Palestinian armed groups in the Gaza Strip only part of a deal that includes the release of Gilad Shalit.

"In the last ceasefire, Gilad Shalit was kidnapped and any serious initiative requires his return first," he said. (Anat Barshkovsky)
[END]
References:
Ynet News: Minister Boim: Gaza ceasefire hinges on release of Shalit

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Hamas: if any harm comes to our leaders, Israel can forget about Gilad Shalit

2007-05-26T16:56:00.000+10:00

Hamas military wing spokesman Abu Obaida said Saturday that if any of Hamas leaders are harmed, Israel can "forget about Gilad Shalit".

"Suicide bombings in Israel are just a matter of time and proper conditions…we can fire rockets even beyond Ashkelon, and we will resume suicide bombings and kidnappings," added Obaida. (Ali Waked)

Article from Ynet News

Negotiations on Shalit suspended

2007-05-25T16:49:00.000+10:00

(reproduction photo)

Egyptian foreign minister tells reporters talks on kidnapped Israeli soldier put on hold due to violence in Gaza

The negotiations for the release of kidnapped Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit have been suspended due to the situation in Gaza, Egypt's Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit said Friday.

"The talks have been put on hold for now, in light of the situation and the internal Palestinian tensions," Aboul Gheit told reporters in Cairo.

Hamas and Fatah representatives left for the Egyptian capital on Friday in hope of reaching an Egyptian-mediated truce between the rivaling factions. The representatives are also scheduled to discuss the escalation with Israel.

Egypt's intelligence chief Omar Suleiman said that his country played a key role "in the rehabilitation of the relations within the Palestinian people… so that they can return to the negotiating table with Israel."

The London-based Arabic language newspaper al-Quds al-Arabi quoted a Palestinian official as saying that Suleiman is going to pressure Hamas and Fatah to bring the Shalit affair to an end.

Article from Ynet News

Eight months in terrorist captivity as the World turns a blind eye.

2007-03-09T19:00:00.000+11:00

10 March 2007

Eight months tommorrow, have passed since the unprovoked abduction of Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser on the Israeli side of the Lebanese border, and of Gilad Shalit on the Israeli side of the border with Gaza.
[Click Read More...]

Eight months have passed since the unprovoked abduction of Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser on the Israeli side of the Lebanese border, an action that precipitated widespread confrontation between Israel and the Lebanon-based Hizbullah terrorist organization. To date no word has been heard from the two captive soldiers, and neither their families nor the government of Israel have any knowledge of their whereabouts or their current state of health.

Two weeks prior to their abduction, another soldier, Gilad Shalit, was abducted as well, this time on the Israeli side of the border with Gaza. His family, too, anxiously awaits news from him. Especially grave is the fact that these unprovoked abductions were carried out on sovereign Israeli territory.

Taken from their families eight months ago, these captive soldiers are denied the most basic of human rights as enshrined in the Geneva Convention. In a gross breach of U.N. Resolution 1701, the terrorist organizations that carried out these abductions, and Syria and Iran who support them, behave as if these human rights are nothing more than a bargaining chip in their game of negotiation, refusing even to transmit messages to the captives from their families. International bodies who met with the captives' families have also tried to forward messages and letters, but they have been met with a negative response as well.

Neither Israel nor any other civilized, law abiding country can accept this situation. The World speaks of Human rights yet ignores the most basic rights of these kidnapped soldiers.

Gilad Shalit (20) was born on August 28, 1986. He is the son of Aviva and Noam Shalit and the brother of Yoel (23) and Hadas (16).

Gilad was born in Nahariya but was raised from the age of two in Mitzpe Hila in the western Galilee. He graduated with distinction from the science class of Manor Kabri High School. Gilad loves math and sports. He has enjoyed playing basketball ever since he was a child, but is interested in sports in general. He follows the different leagues and tournaments all over the world, from tennis and basketball to cycling and athletics. If you wish to know the results of a tournament somewhere in the world - it’s Gilad you should ask.

Gilad is a well-mannered, quiet and introverted young man. An almost permanent shy and hesitant smile light up his face. Gilad is always volunteering to help everyone.

Gilad began his military service about a year before his abduction - at the end of July 2005. Despite a low medical profile, he preferred to serve in a combat unit, followed his elder brother Yoel into the armored corps. After successfully ended his training, Gilad was guarding and ensuring the security of the settlements around Gaza when he was abducted by terrorists.

Since the attack at Kerem Shalom on Sunday, June 25, 2006, Gilad has been held in the Gaza Strip by Hamas.

Ehud (Udi) Goldwasser (31) was born in Nahariya on July 18, 1975. He is the son of Miki and Shlomo and elder brother of Yair (26) and Gadi (23). He married Karnit 10 months before his abduction.

Udi is a graduate of the science class in the Amal Comprehensive High School in Nahariya. He served in the combat battalion Zabar Givati. After his military service he toured Australia alone on a motorcycle for half a year. Later, he completed his preparatory studies in the Technion and went on to study environmental engineering.

Udi is a kind and much loved person. He is considerate of other people’s opinions even if they oppose his own. It’s fun being in his company. He is a loving and caring person, always ready to offer a helping hand in any situation. He is a man of principles and values, knowledgeable in many subjects. He loves movies, music and spending time with his friends. A motorcycle buff, he has encyclopedic knowledge of all models. As a child he sailed the seas with his father, and has recently got his skipper license for sailing yachts and was planning to sail abroad.

Conservation of the environment is of the utmost importance to Udi. Indeed, he joined a Green group to help clean our nature reserves. Udi loves animals, and although he suffers from a mild fur allergy, he lives with two cats and lovingly adopted an abandoned and injured dog he found in the street. Over the last few years he has developed a great interest in photography. He spends much of his spare time taking pictures of scenery and nature in Israel and abroad. Lately, his hobby has become a profession having begun to take on projects as a photographer.

On July 12, 2006 Udi was abducted to Lebanon after Hizbullah attacked his military patrol.

Eldad Regev (26) was born and raised in Kiryat Motzkin. He is the son of Zvi and the late Tova Regev, and brother of Benny, Ofer and Eyal.
Eldad completed his secondary education at the Yeshiva High School in Kiryat Shmuel. He excelled in biology and passed all his matriculation exams with ease. In spite of his mother Tova's untimely death when he was in the 12th grade, Eldad decided to serve in a combat unit and volunteered for the elite Givati infantry brigade. After his army service, like most of his friends, he traveled to the Far East. On his return he started to work while at the same time enrolling in Bar Ilan University's pre-law preparatory course with the aim of being accepted to the university's law faculty.

One of the qualities that makes Eldad so special is the kindness of his heart – never hesitating to donate and offer aid to anyone in need. Eldad made many friends throughout high school and during his army service, all of whom can attest to his fine qualities.

Among Eldad’s hobbies are football (last year he passed a coaching course - he is a fan of Maccabi Tel Aviv football team), music and books. A fanatic football fan, before being called up for reserve duty Eldad closely followed the World Cup games. He also went to the concert given by Roger Water (of Pink Floyd) in Kerem Shalom.

Eldad was called up for military reserve duty after completing his exams at the preparatory course in Bar Ilan University. Three days before his abduction he visited his family and participated in the annual memorial for his mother. Later, he watched the last game of the World Cup between Italy and France. The following day he returned to the complete the remainder of his reserve duty.

On July 12, 2006 Eldad was abducted and taken to Lebanon after Hizbullah attacked his military patrol.

References:
This article is substantially based on a previous article
Behind the Headlines: Six months in terrorist captivity
which is from the Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
It is provided here to provide context to visitors of this blog.

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An interview with Gilad's Father

2006-12-13T04:32:00.000+11:00

Noam Shalit

Lisa Goldman from On the Face blog interviewed Gilad's Father:

Hamas has confirmed that Gilad is alive and well, but nothing has been heard from him. He has not received any visits from the Red Cross and Hamas has not revealed where he is being held. There are many rumours about negotiations for his release in a prisoner exchange but, as Noam observed, the vast majority of the newspaper reports are disinformation. No-one knows whether Hamas and the Israeli government will reach an agreement at all, let alone when.

When I called Noam to request an interview, he said, very politely, that he did not have any new information about his son. I told him that we were interested in writing a piece about him. "But I am not the story," he protested gently.

Noam Shalit has been described as a hero and a symbol of peace. When asked whether it was true that he had spoken to Ghazi Hamad, the (Hamas) spokesman of the Palestinian Authority (PA) who recently expressed harsh criticism of his own people for their failure to build a functioning society in Gaza (article here), he said, "Yes, I’m not very political. He seemed like a nice man and I have no problem talking to anyone who is willing to talk to me and doesn’t want to kill me. " He speaks frequently with PA officials and is planning to visit Gaza in order to meet Hamas politicians.

He visited the families who were bereaved at Beit Hanoun, and he also visited the wounded residents of Beit Hanoun who were evacuated to Israeli hospitals.

"I know Beit Hanoun was a mistake, but it was a huge tragedy and a lot of innocent people who just want to live normal lives were caught between battling powers. At the hospital, I appealed for a break in the cycle of violence."

Quite a lot of people read about Noam Shalit’s actions and concluded that he was a leftist who did not represent mainstream Israeli society. Actually, I think he is a good example of Israel’s silent majority.

Noam describes himself as non-political. He did not vote in the last elections ("I was in Eilat") but when asked, he said he most identifies with Ehud Olmert’s centrist Kadima party. He also describes himself as pro-peace, although he thinks that calling him a hero of peace is "very exaggerated." He was "strongly" in favour of the withdrawal from Gaza because he saw it as a chance for peace: "I hoped that the Palestinians in Gaza would build businessess and hope for the future, factories and houses. But instead they built tunnels to smuggle weapons and they built bomb factories. It is very disappointing." But his desire for peace remains unshaken. "I really believe that the extremists on both sides are dragging us into this conflict. Because the vast majority on both sides, I think, want peace and quiet. We don’t love each other, but we are sick of wars and violence."

Gilad Shalit has become a symbol and a bargaining chip, but of course for Noam he is just his son - and he wants him back. Right now the negotiations for Gilad’s release are stuck on the issue of how many Palestinian political prisoners should be freed in an exchange (there is talk of exchanging 1,000 Palestinians held in Israeli jails for Gilad), and also on who those prisoners should be. There is controversy, for example, about releasing Marwan Barghouti, the popular former Fatah activist who was sentenced in a Tel Aviv civilian court to five life sentences for murder and attempted murder (more about Barghouti here).

Noam sees all these negotations in simple and pragmatic terms: "I have appealed to the Palestinian and Israeli governments, not to make grand political deals on the back of my son. I know that the political prisoner issue is very important on the Palestinian street, but we won’t be able to resolve it using my son. They abduct my son, we jail Hamas members of the Palestinian parliament, and then they respond with another kidnapping... It’s endless, and nothing will be resolved like this. The only solution is for both parties to sit down and negotiate."

Gilad Shalit on the day of his army induction. Summer, 2005. (Gilad family photo).

We asked Noam if he had made any plans for Gilad’s return.

"No," said Noam. "We haven’t made any plans. We haven’t even thought about it. We know we will have to treat him very carefully because he was only 19 years old when he was abducted. He had been in the army for less than one year."

Then he said, "Gilad’s release seems so far away."

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Story Credit and thanks to: Lisa Goldman [Original Post]
Lisa Goldman is a Canadian-Israeli freelance journalist, based in Tel Aviv.

HaTikva - Rally for the release of four Israeli soldiers

2006-09-01T15:04:00.000+10:00

If the video doesn't load click here:
HaTikva - Rally for the release of four Israeli soldiers

Free: Gilad Shalit: Gilad Shalit * Gilad and Israel * Gilad * HaTikva Rally * Jewish Soldier and Gilad * Kidnapped Soldier * Justice * Hostage * Kidnapped Israeli * Gilad Shalit * IDF* Terrorism* Jewish * Hamas * Jew

Gilad Shalit's father: Time not on our side

2006-06-29T16:14:00.000+10:00

Left: Addressing foreign press (Photo: Avihu Shapira)

Father of kidnapped IDF soldier Gilad Shalit expresses concern for son's safety, says family has nothing concrete to grasp to other than unverified reports; continues to turn to foreign media to ask kidnappers to show sign of life from his captive son.

"As long as we don't receive living proof that Gilad is alright, we have nothing to grasp to other than unverified reports at this stage," Shalit said Thursday.

"We know clearly that time is not on our side, but against us. We are not sure of anything," Shalit said.

He spoke with journalists Thursday afternoon and shared with them the experience his family had gone through in the last 24 hours.

Addressing the location of the body of Eliyahu Asheri, the kidnapped teenager from the settlement of Itamar, who was murdered by his captors, Shalit said: "This does not influence our issue, but we express sorrow for his death and send condolences to the family. I as a parent turn to the parents and ask them to guard their children, and certainly this request is especially meant for parents living in the West Bank."

Regarding the IDF operations in recent days, Shalit said: "I want to allow the government to utilize all moves to the fullest. It's clear that that it's impossible to decide it all in one move. We are all the time in touch with army and government officials, and I am assured and sure that the steps being taken now are carefully weighed, with the emphasis being on preventing the harming of innocent civilians on both sides."

"We are all human beings and I expect that Gilad's kidnappers prove that they are human beings. Until now we have not received any sign of life from them, but we hope to receive it as soon as possible," Shalit conclude.

Brigade Commander: We're doing everything

Lieutenant Colonel Yoav, commander of the armored corps brigade in which Gilad Shalit serves, arrived at the Shalit family home in Mitzpeh Hila and spoke with the parents.

"This is a strong family and I came to say that the brigade is with them. We will do everything and are doing everything in order to bring Gilad home," the officer said. He confirmed that the brigade was involved in the current fighting in Gaza.

Left: Commander leaves Shalit family's house (Photo: Avihu Shapira)

Noam Shalit was moved by the visit and thanked Yoav for his help. He asked that in addition to the intensive operations to bring back Gilad, the brigade also aid the bereaved families of two comrades who fell in the attack on the tank near Kerem Shalom.

Shalit made appeals to the foreign press, mainly in English, to try and bring additional pressure on his son's kidnappers and release at least a sign of life from Gilad.

Defense Minister Amir Peretz said during a situation analysis meeting in Tel Aviv that "we are in one of the most significant moments in deciding the rules of the game between us and terror elements in the Palestinian Authority in the near future."

The defense minister ordered "every operation taking place in the field to be examined in relation to its effectiveness."

YNet News:
By Hagai Einav