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

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

Free: Gilad Shalit
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Despite Report, 'Assume Goldwasser, Regev Alive'

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
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A Sign of Life from Gilad Shalit Received by Israel

(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

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Bush, Free Your Captive: Jonathan Pollard

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.

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Gilad Shalit: When the Shark and The Fish First Met

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

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take advantage of the situation

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)

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(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..

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Eyal Regev: We must listen to Nasrallah

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

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Body of Israeli swapped for Hizbullah prisoner, 2 slain fighters

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

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Olmert/Bush, Don't Miss This Opportunity

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

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