Daniel Pipes On Why This Release of 104 Terrorist Differs From Previous Ones

The following by Daniel Pipes is reposted here with permission:

Thoughts on the Release of 104 Palestinian Murderers

by Daniel Pipes
July 27, 2013
Cross-posted from National Review Online, The Corner

http://www.danielpipes.org/blog/2013/07/thoughts-on-the-release-of-104-palestinian

Israeli leaders have a long history of making lopsided trades with their Arab enemies. These include:

• 1985 – 1,150 prisoners for 3 captured Israelis
• 2000 – 450 Arab prisoners for 3 Israeli bodies and a kidnapped Israeli;
• 2008 – 5 Arab prisoners (including the psychopath Samir al-Kuntar) and 199 Arab bodies for 2 Israeli bodies;
• 2011 – 1,027 Palestinian prisoners for Gilad Schalit.

Samir Kuntar on arrival in Lebanon Credit: AFP
Photo did not appear in original article

I strenuously opposed these unbalanced exchanges (e.g., the Schalit one), even as I acknowledged the honorable Israeli intent not to abandon soldiers.

Tamimi Terrorists Released And Married--Courtesy Of Israel

Newly married terrorists, Ahlam Tamimi and her cousin Nizar al Tamimi

Ben Cohen writes that the Fallout From Shalit Deal Continues to Divide Israelis:

Released Hamas Terrorist Planning On Kidnapping More Israeli Soldiers

Back in January, the IDF blog had a post about how Hamas TV encouraged the Kidnapping of six more Israeli soldiers in order to free the remaining 6,000 prisoners:

According to their own numbers, Hamas terrorists have executed 24 abduction attempts since the organizations inception in 1987, but planned kidnappings of soldiers date back even further.

Here is an excerpt from Hamas TV:

AntiWar.Com: "Best Source For Antiwar News"--Just Not The Facts (2 Updates)

Note: the webpage in question has been taken down without a word of apology for the damage done, but there is still a cached copy here

The website AntiWar.com modestly informs us they are Your Best Source for Antiwar New, Viewpoints and Activities

If what they print is the best source for antiwar news, someone better find another source, fast.

Here is what AntiWar.com reported yesterday:

Israel Plans to Betray Promise on Prisoner Swap Deal
The second part of the agreement - to release another 550 Palestinians after the return of Gilad Shalit - may be abandoned

Israel may betray its earlier promise to release hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in the second phase of a prisoner swap agreement that secured the release of one captive Israeli soldier.

The US Can Extradite Freed Palestinian Terrorists Who Murdered Americans

While it is true that the Palestinian terrorists who murdered Israelis have been freed in exchange for the release of Gilad Shalit, some of those murdered by the terrorists were American citizens--and the US can prosecute Palestinian terrorists who murdered Americans:

Since the Antiterrorism Act of 1990, it has been a capital crime under American law, punishable by “death or imprisonment for any term of years or for life, or both,” to “kill a national of the United States, while such national is outside the United States.” A conspirator in such a crime can get up to 20 years imprisonment. No statute of limitations precludes prosecution of old offenses.

Video: Hamas Does The Math--"6 Zionist Soldiers = 6,000 Prisoners"

If there was supposed to be any kind of lesson that Hamas was supposed to have learned, it apparently is of the New Math variety--the kind that seems to only apply in the Middle East, and only when dealing with Israel:

Human Rights Groups Equate Murderers And Terrorists With Gilad Shalit

PRESS RELEASE October 18 2011 Contact: Jason Edelstein NGO Monitor +972-52-861-2129 mail@ngo-monitor.org

Shalit's Ordeal Ends, Human Rights Frameworks Fail JERUSALEM - In conjunction with the release of kidnapped Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) claiming a human rights mandate immorally equated Shalit's situation with that of more than 1,000 Palestinian terrorists and convicted murderers. Professor Gerald M. Steinberg, president of human rights watchdog NGO Monitor, welcomed Shalit's release while noting that this episode further exposes the moral bankruptcy of international human rights mechanisms. "Throughout the five years of Shalit's captivity in Gaza, during which every human rights obligation was blatantly violated, NGOs failed to implement consistent, sustained campaigns to secure his release," Steinberg stated. "Over the last week, these same NGOs, many of whom receive hundreds of thousands of Euros annually from the EU and European governments, welcomed the release of mass murderers responsible for the deaths of more than 550 Israelis."

Arlene Kushner On The Release Of Terrorists For Gilad Shalit

From Arlene Kushner:

October 17, 2011

"Continuing"

Who doesn't remember the horrendous, the breathtakingly obscene lynching in Ramallah in 2000 of two IDF soldiers who had lost their way?  The picture of one of the lynchers, showing his bloodied hands, was seared in the consciousness of all of us:

AFP

The Palestinian Arab in that picture was Abed al-Aziz Salaha.  I neglected to mention yesterday that he is one of the terrorists who is now scheduled to be released. 

Mideast Media Sampler 10/17/2011

From DG:

1) She keeps the home fires burning

The LA Times has a touching story about Raeda Omjamal, who awaits the return of her husband Rawhi Mushtaha, one of the 1027 prisoners whom Israel plans to release in the deal to gain the release of hostage, Gilad Shalit.

Israeli President Shimon Peres On Pardons: "I Neither Forgive Nor Forget"--But He DID Forget!

Avi Mayer tweeted yesterday about a report in Israel on Channel 2:

Peres will write "I neither forgive nor forget" on the file of each Palestinian prisoner pardoned in Shalit deal.

I don't know whether to be angered at such a statement or to respect the apparent sentiment behind it--but I do know that this is not the first time Peres has said this, holding his nose while signing pardons for murderers of innocent Israeli citizens.

Peres did the same thing when he signed the pardon for child murderer Samri Kuntar when Israel exchanged him, with others for the dead bodies of Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev:

Is The Exchange For Shalit A Sign Hamas Is In Trouble?

A joke circulating the territory posits that the reason Hamas's armed wing, Al Qassam Brigades, has stopped firing rockets at Israel is that the fighters' jeeps lack air conditioning. Residents tell stories of Hamas officials who used to drive modest cars now sporting luxury vehicles, and Gazans like Mr. Gamar, the gas station owner, complain the government is reaching into their pockets in every way it can.
Hamas popularity hits a new low after opposing UN statehood bid, Christian Science Monitor

Daniel Cohen writes that there are 4 pressure points being felt by Hamas and that is Why Shalit Coming Home means Hamas is in Trouble:

1) Diminishing popular support
2) Losing headquarters in Damascus
3) Key Al-Qaeda assassinations have weakened terror worldwide
4) The Iranian regime is on thin ice

Read the whole thing for details.

Italy's Il Foglio also attempts to explain why Israel and Hamas agreed to an exchange to free Gilad Shalit now.

Eliyahu m'Tsiyon of the Emet m'Tsiyon blog translates and summarizes the post:

Mideast Media Sampler 10/16/2011

From DG:

1) Closer to free

In 2003 Thomas Friedman wrote The Reality Principle which began:

Have you noticed how often Israel kills a Hamas activist and the victim is described by Israelis as ''a senior Hamas official'' or a ''key operative''? This has led me to wonder: How many senior Hamas officials could there be? We're not talking about I.B.M. here. We're talking about a ragtag terrorist group. By now Israel should have killed off the entire Hamas leadership twice. Unless what is happening is something else, something I call Palestinian math: Israel kills one Hamas operative and three others volunteer to take his place, in which case what Israel is doing is actually self-destructive.

Four years later Elder of Ziyon celebrated a great anniversary:

Petition To Remove Sbarro Massacre Terrorist From The List Of Terrorists To Be Freed

Here is the text of the petition:

Remove Ahlam Tamimi from the list of terrorists to be freed

Background (Preamble):

The government of Israel has agreed (October 2011) to a transaction with the Hamas terrorist regime for the release of an Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit, held hostage for more than five years.

In exchange, Israel is asked to release more than one thousand prisoners, all of them terrorists, many of them convicted murderers who have been sentenced to multi terms of life imprisonment. The list is long, but one terrorist in particular - a woman of 31 - stands out. Her name is Ahlam Tamimi and she is serving 16 life terms for a massacre which she engineered and helped to carry out.

We are asking that her name be removed from the long list of terrorists to be freed. She represents less than one tenth of one percent of the Hamas demands. Tamimi should remain in prison for the remainder of her days.

Petition:

Role Of Terrorist To Be Released For Gilad Shalit Is Being Misreported

Israel Matzav has the list of the terrorists who are going to be freed in exchange for Gilad Shalit--among them:

The list contains includes Walid Anajas, who was convicted for his involvement in the bombing of the Moment Cafe in Jerusalem in 2002. Twelve civilians were murdered and 54 injured in the attack.

Also on the list is Nasser Yataima, convicted of planning the 2002 Passover Seder suicide-bomb attack on the Park Hotel in Netanya, in which 30 civilians were killed and 140 were wounded.

Another terrorist scheduled to be released is Ahlam Tamimi, who was involved in the Sbarro massacre.
The problem is that McClatchy is misreporting Tamimi's role in the Sbarro massacre: