Israel and the Palestinians today began a controversial and lopsided prisoner swap in which Israel is releasing 1,027 Palestinians for a single Israel soldier who was captured in 2006.
Sgt. Gilad Shalit, the lone Israeli soldier, was taken across the border and into Egypt early Tuesday in an SUV filled with armed men who quickly returned to Gaza, an official told The Associated Press.
In first public comments on Egyptian TV, Shalit said that he is "very excited."
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"I missed my family very much, I missed my friends , I want to be out, I want to tell people what it is I went through," he said. "I would like very much for the remaining Palestinian prisoners to be released if they will not turn back and fight Israel again. I hope this deal will help bring peace closer between Israel and the Palestinians and cooperation between the two sides."
Hezbollah Wednesday praised as a victory for the resistance in Palestine a deal between Hamas and Israel to release over 1,000 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the captive Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.
“Once again, the resistance in Palestine achieved a great victory by forcing the arrogant Jewish regime to respond to its logic and demand,” Hezbollah said in a statement.
Both Israel and Gaza's Hamas confirmed Tuesday that an agreement was reached to release over 1,000 Palestinians in two stages, the first involving 450 to be swapped for Shalit, with the remaining 550 to be freed later.
“Executing this deal ... shows that the resistance in Lebanon and Palestine and other places in the Arab and Muslim world is effective in regaining land, freeing prisoners and preserving its freedom, dignity, and independence,” the statement added.
Hezbollah also urged Arab and Muslim people to embrace the resistance which it said had proved to be the “only means to regain rights, by freeing prisoners and land.”
“We, in Hezbollah, believe that such a victory forces the collapse of some people's illusion that negotiations and begging the international community or great powers could actually bring back any rights,” the statement added.
Many, including IDF former Rabbi, think this was a foul deal for Israel:
Former IDF Chief Rabbi Brigadier General (Res.) Avichai Ronsky
The former IDF Chief Rabbi Brigadier General (Res.) Avichai Ronsky on Tuesday said that Israel should not have strived towards a prisoner swap that included freeing terrorists in exchange for Gilad Shalit. He believes the captive soldier should have been declared a dead soldier that cannot be reclaimed.
Speaking to Ynet, Ronsky claimed that the only right way to release Shalit was through military action and if that was impossible – to sadly accept the fact that the soldier would remain in Hamas captivity though he added it was "tough to say that".
Rabbi Ronsky explained his position: "You can't bring an entire country to its knees, that's just crazy. It's complete surrender."
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As to the question of whether there would not be a huge blow to morale among the troops on the Israeli side when soldiers know that the IDF won't necessarily do everything to rescue them from captivity, Ronsky said: "Just the opposite. They don't want to be exchanged for terrorists; they want to be rescued through a military operation."
On September 30, 2000, France 2 broadcast a tragic scene that was almost certainly staged and faked: the “murder” of Muhammad al Dura by “the Jews.” The images, shot by Palestinian cameraman Talal Abu Rahmah and irresponsibly broadcast without due diligence by France 2’s Israel correspondent Charles Enderlin, became a major trigger of the “second Intifada.” Violence in Gaza and the West Bank erupted accompanied by the cries “revenge for the blood of Mohamed al Durah!” Daniel Pearl was beheaded with a picture of Mohamed al Dura behind him and with pictures of the scene spliced into the slitting of his throat.
Eleven years later, France 2 is once again signing up for the Palestinian cause –this time by actively taking part in Abbas’ propaganda. On October 3, 2011, France 2 broadcast a special report on “Palestine.” In a nutshell, it goes like this. The 1947 UN Partition Plan didn’t work out and both parties are to be blamed for it; the PA government in the West Bank is the Switzerland of the Middle East; as for Gaza, all Hamas wants is peace and whenever rockets are shot at Israel, it is only and always in retaliation to Israeli unprovoked attacks and aggressions; Israel steals the Palestinians’ water and in the Jordan Valley it turned a green land into a desert; Jewish “settlers” first came to Hebron in 1968 and since then they terrorize helpless Palestinians; the Palestinians’ “resistance” is always peaceful and harmless; the only reason why Israel still enjoys US support is because of AIPAC’s money, threats and control of US politicians and media; the 7 millions descendants of Palestinian refugees from 1948 cannot and should not be integrated in their host countries (such as Lebanon) and they have the right to return to Israel.
The scenario of France 2’s special report could have been written by Mahmoud Abbas himself. Its effects will probably not be as dramatic as those of the al Dura hoax. But the third Intifada –an Intifada of lies and propaganda- has been launched, and France 2 is once again giving it a hand.
Europe needs to eliminate asylum given to members of the Kurdistan Workers' Party within European borders to crack down on the terror threat it poses, Turkey says.
Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told an international counter-terrorism symposium hosted in New York Monday by the U.N. Counter-Terrorism Implementation Task Force Office that the Kurdish rebel group, known by the initials PKK, is continuing to raise funds and organize in Europe.
Complaining that PKK members take advantage of European asylum laws, Davutoglu said the PKK recruits, disseminates propaganda and sell illegal drugs there to fund terrorist attacks in Turkey, the Anatolian Agency reported.
Shin Bet officials said Hamas operations in China were financial and included money laundering and procurement of equipment. In Turkey, Hamas is believed to be active in recruiting operatives.
On Wednesday, Strategic Affairs Minister Moshe Ya'alon accused Ankara of cooperating with Hamas and Iran. "How can you trust a government that consorts with Iran and Hamas?" Ya'alon asked during a speech he gave at a conference in Tel Aviv.
Israel and the Palestinians today began a controversial and lopsided prisoner swap in which Israel is releasing 1,027 Palestinians for a single Israel soldier who was captured in 2006.
