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MidEast Swap Triggers Controversy, Painful Memories
Israel and Hezbollah trade prisoners for the bodies of kidnapped soldiers.
This morning at 9.40 Israel time, 24 months and five days after Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev were abducted by Hezbollah in a cross-border raid that precipitated the Second Lebanon War, the bodies of the two reserve soldiers were returned to Israel.
Hezbollah officials arrived shortly after 9 a.m. at the Naqoura border crossing, which borders the Israeli town of Rosh Hanikra. Ignoring reporters’ questions about the state of the two captives, they waited until they were surrounded by photographers and cameramen before dramatically unloading and displaying two black wooden coffins.
Hezbollah security official Wafik Safa then said, “We are handing over the two Israeli soldiers that were captured by the resistance … and whose fate has been unknown until this moment. Now you know their fate.”
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) then transferred the two coffins to the Israeli side of the border, where forensic examiners identified the badly decomposed corpses.
While the IDF forensic examiner’s report, issued shortly after the war, had concluded that the two men were highly unlikely to have survived the wounds they sustained during the July 12, 2006 raid, and the prime minister’s office had reluctantly announced nearly one month ago that the two men were considered dead, Hezbollah had steadfastly refused to give any official word on their fate.
Thus, at 9.39 a.m., the Goldwasser and Regev families could still hope that their loved ones would emerge alive from the back of the Hezbollah truck. But by 9.40, that hope was extinguished.
Eldad Regev’s father, Zvi, told Israeli Army Radio, “It was a terrible thing to see, really terrible. I was always optimistic, and I hoped all the time that I would meet Eldad and hug him.” A commentator on Israel’s Channel 10 news contemptuously referred to the Shi’ite militia’s insistence on playing games until the last possible second as an “act of necrophilia.”
As the image of the coffins was broadcast on Israeli television, a muted wail of grief was heard from the friends and relatives gathered outside the Regev home in Kiryat Motzkin. Eldad Regev’s aunt, Hannah, collapsed and was attended to by paramedics.
In exchange for the bodies of the abducted soldiers, Israel agreed to transfer the bodies of 185 Palestinians and Lebanese militants who had been killed by the IDF while attempting to infiltrate Israel, to release four Hezbollah militants who had been captured during the Second Lebanon War, and to release Israel’s most notorious political prisoner – the Lebanese Druze, Samir Kuntar.
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Lisa Goldman is a freelance Canadian-Israeli journalist, who blogs at On the Face. She lives in Tel Aviv.
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25 Comments
1. Mabel:This is really sad and discouraging but it shows how much the Israelis value their people, dead or alive. Hezbollah, Hamas and other terrorists don’t value life at all and will send their women and children, even the mentally ill, to the front lines strapped with bombs to kill jews. What a moral abyss…
Jul 16, 2008 - 8:19 am 2. Israpundit » Blog Archive » Not All Lebanese Celebrate Kuntar’s Release:[...] Lisa Goldman, who blogs at On the Face, has a post on Pajamas Media, where she notes that not everyone there is celebrating: [...]
Jul 16, 2008 - 8:45 am 3. Cletus:They shouldn’t have released that Lebanese Druze piece of garbage. He crushed a four year old girls head. He is a vile creature who shouldn’t be breathing air.
Jul 16, 2008 - 9:21 am 4. aihog:The deal makes a war between the parties more likely because it makes Israel look weak in the eyes of the Arabs and weakness invites an attack.
Jul 16, 2008 - 9:24 am 5. barb:This is exactly why I quit supporting Israel. I wish them well but they are quickly killing themselves with this liberal, pacifistic clap trap. These killers must be laughing all the way to the bank & especially to the hero’s welcome awaiting these murderers. They respect only one thing and that is hard core brutality and power. It seems the Irgun (sp) was right and Ben Gurion was wrong. Terror towards Israel must be responded to with equal pain for those who terrorize. Until that happens nothing will go forward in the Middle East.
Jul 16, 2008 - 9:34 am 6. The Rosett Report » UN Fauxcilitation of the Israel-Hezbollah Swap:[...] lauding the “prisoner exchange,” as the UN calls this swap of coffins for terrorists, Ban totally ignores the terms of the UN’s own Resolution 1701, adopted by the Security [...]
Jul 16, 2008 - 9:53 am 7. J.J. Sefton:Should’ve wiped the smile off that sub-human’s face — with a well-placed .50 caliber round from a sniper rifle at the exchange point. Now THAT would’ve sent the right message.
Jul 16, 2008 - 10:07 am 8. mjk:barb,
It’s a shame that a policy that has been in effect since Israel became a nation has stopped your support of such a wonderful country.
Israelis have a horror of leaving their soldiers in the hands of their enemies. They always have. It was exacerbated by the Holocaust. No one knowing where their families were or where the bodies ended up. So they’ve always done these prisoner exchanges. Are they irrational? Sure. Are they slightly bizarre? Of Course. But that’s Israel – improbable and humane….
Jul 16, 2008 - 10:19 am 9. Charlie (Colorado):It’s hard not to think prisoner exchanges ought to be value given for value received: live prisoners for live prisoners, or cadavers for cadavers. If some of the cadavers are more fresh than others, well, that’s the way things go.
Jul 16, 2008 - 10:20 am 10. uburoisc:When Israel sends a group of attack helicopters to take out the entire street at the next mass funeral for a dead terrorist, then I will know they are serious, until then, they are just waiting for their adversaries to get stronger.
Jul 16, 2008 - 11:48 am 11. shira0607:release Israel’s most notorious political prisoner – the Lebanese Druze, Samir Kuntar.
Since when are murderers deemed political prisoners?
Jul 16, 2008 - 1:47 pm 12. Karen:Much of Lebanon was destroyed after those two soldiers were kidnapped. I’d hardly say that Hezbollah came out ahead in all of this. They are pretty damned stupid if they think that they won this prisoner swap or the war. Look how many dead and living Arabs they will trade for two dead Jewish soldiers. They are the losers who devalue their own lives and their own self worth.
And keep in mind there is one very much alive Israeli soldier still in Gaza. Let’s see how many Arabs Hamas will demand for his release. Once he is free, Israel can start to think about changing their policies with regards to captured Arab murderers.
Jul 16, 2008 - 3:37 pm 13. JK:“And keep in mind there is one very much alive Israeli soldier still in Gaza. Let’s see how many Arabs Hamas will demand for his release.”
Yeah, as if Hamas after this, Hamas or anyone else has any interest in exchanging live IDF hostages: they’ve just learned that the dead work just as well.
Israel’s leadership made an irreperable strategic error by accepting this exchange: why do you think that it’s being celebrated as a victory all over the mid-East?
Jul 16, 2008 - 4:50 pm 14. Rightjab » Blog Archive » A heroes welcome for murderers:[...] just goes to show which side is civilised. This morning at 9.40 Israel time, 24 months and five days after Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev [...]
Jul 16, 2008 - 5:30 pm 15. Steve:What exchange; two tortored, dead bodies for live terrorists ready to kill again?
Jul 16, 2008 - 5:38 pm 16. Steve:What exchange; two tortured, dead bodies for live terrorists ready to kill again?
Jul 16, 2008 - 5:46 pm 17. Smarty:This doesn’t show how much Jews value life, or other Jews, unless the answer is “not much”.
Any Jew who would go along with this is worse than a Sonderkommando. WWII Sonderkommandos helped their killers after the camps were made, modern ones are helping set up the defeat that will allow the camps to be built.
I too no longer support Israel. I used to be willing to ignore the 90% of Jews who support socialism in order to support what I thought were the brave Israeli Jews who would fight to survive.
Jul 16, 2008 - 7:14 pm 18. Tonto (USA):I wonder if the islaminazis were told they’d be dead the next time they got caught. That would have been what I told them.
Jul 16, 2008 - 8:22 pm 19. Karen:It’s being celebrated all over the Middle East because they are culturally sick and depraved. They are celebrating the release of a child killer. As I see it, when all is said and done they are losers, not winners. Israel is still here. They are morally, culturally and economically sound. Let the sicko’s celebrate. Let the world see what makes them proud. It looks good on them.
Jul 16, 2008 - 10:36 pm 20. saus:If Sommer wants to give her buddy a spot at PJM, so be it, but put her opinions out in the open and stop covering them in pseudo journalism please. Thanks, I don’t need re-tells at PJM, I can visit Haaretz, or Ynet Or Jpost for summary of events – PJM is an opinion spot. Here’s my opinion – I’m tired of the ‘heroic’ Lebanese who so far have done nothing but hand their country over to Murderers and Islamists and have been cedar revolutionary failures, despite endless world support, and I’m just as tired of those who make excuses for them – This is not the Huffington Post.
Put Ledeen on the front page, stop shoveling me this. I don’t know why PJM keeps shuffling articles out to ‘on the face’ this past month, the previous one on the “bulldozer attack” was littered with errors, starting with the fact that an earth mover was used and not a bulldozer. I think Lisa’s Goldman’s tiresome constant need to interject ‘humanization’ of Israel’s enemies is just that, tiresome. I think the fact that I need to see this ‘in my face’ as an Israeli neo-con here at PJM is not a thrilling move personally. All I have to do to find this humanization BS is basically surf ANYWHERE else.. You want her opinions at PJM, that’s fine integrate her blog here and let her stand on her opinions like everyone else.
Jul 17, 2008 - 5:59 am 21. Drei Stellungnahmen, die Sie möglicherweise verpasst haben « Medien BackSpin:[...] Ein bitterer Kommentar in Now Lebanon (via PJM) kritisiert scharf die Hisbollah und sagt, dass die Libanesen den wahren Preis für die Freiheit [...]
Jul 17, 2008 - 9:25 am 22. Doug:If Lebanon were a civilized country it would put the killer in jail. That is what civilized countries do with their citizens that commit atrocities overseas. Lebanon does not deserve to be considered a humane nation and should be treated as such. Oh G-d where is the justice?may Israel find retribution in the ruins of Amadinajabs regime.
Jul 17, 2008 - 1:54 pm 23. olad:I think its kind of illusion how come Isreal let the arabs walk awey like that ?
Jul 17, 2008 - 5:12 pm 24. Michael T:how come Isreal exchanged their dead soldiers whith moving objects of khisbulah ?: these are some qoustions of anger and hatred from some humane nations. but Its as I reckon one of the most Importent steps that Isreal goverment took and moved to the side of Responsibilty , peace,stapility and showed could secure the region in particuler and world atlarge.congratulation Ehud Olmert good job.
Arabs let be your turn and do the same.
Kuntar is celebrated as a hero in Lebanon and the rest of the Arab/Moslem world. Of all the debates of the superiority of Islam over Western Civilization, I think this summarizes it the best.
Jul 19, 2008 - 9:59 pm 25. ahsi:we should respect israel’s decision….it shows how much they care for their citizens(dead or alive) but as every coin has two sides…we cannot deny the fact…that driven by emotions israel has released ruthless perpetrators who are ready to kill more…
Jan 21, 2009 - 10:35 am