Your front page article by Uriel Heilman (“Shalit deal was best Israel was going to get,” Oct. 14) was quite informative.
The illegal kidnapping and hostage taking by Hamas terrorists of Shalit in a June 2006 raid along the Israel-Gaza border aroused enormous concern and support for his release around the world. Critics of the prisoner-exchange swaps warn that such a deal merely encourages Israel’s enemies to capture more Israelis. They consider this to be too steep a price to pay and a capitulation to terror.
Ehud Barak, Israel’s Defense Minister, rightly stated that the Shalit deal strengthened solidarity but warned that its approach to future kidnappings must change.
He also stated that a life-loving country cannot continue to release over 1,000 prisoners for a soldier. He considers that to be a slippery slope that has to stop.
It appears that Arabs will stop murdering Jews, Christians and their own brethren, only when an Arab mother will shed her first tear at her son’s “heroic” death.
Golda Meir said it well. Israel will have peace only when Arab mothers love their children more than they hate us.
Meanwhile, we are compelled to be our brothers’ keepers, all for one and one for all.