Remains of Hostage from 2014 In Exchange For 200 Terrorists Offer For Israel To Mull Over

 Nadene Goldfoot                                               

The remains of IDF officer Lt. Hadar Goldin were returned to Israel by Hamas on Sunday. Goldin fell in battle and was abducted in 2014 during Operation Protective Edge in Gaza. He was 23. Goldin was formally identified and will now be buried. He left behind parents, a sister, two brothers, and a fiancée.  Hamas's armed wing had said on Sunday that it would hand over Lt Goldin's body as part of a ceasefire deal.  Hamas has now returned all 20 living hostages, and 24 out of 28 deceased hostages under the first phase of the deal.

The 2014 Gaza War, also known as Operation Protective Edge was a military operation launched by Israel on 8 July 2014 in the Gaza Strip governed by Hamas since 2007 and occupied by Israel since 1967.

By July 20, To date, 66 soldiers have been killed during Operation Protective Edge. Six civilians have also been killed. The operation, which began on July 8, gave way to an open-ended ceasefire on August 26, 2014.Its goal, as set by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, was to attain sustain quiet for the citizens of Israel and undermine Hamas’s terrorist capacity. Netanyahu said on August 27 that he was confident the latter had been achieved but was “not certain” yet about the former. If Hamas restarted the conflict, he said, Israel would hit back “seven times as hard.”

• Triggering Event: The escalation followed the June 2014 kidnapping and murder of three Israeli teenagers (Naftali Fraenkel, Gilad Shaer, and Eyal Yifrah) in the West Bank by Hamas-affiliated militants.  The incident, known as the 2014 kidnapping and murders of Israeli teenagers, occurred on the evening of June 12, 2014. The three students were hitchhiking in the Gush Etzion area of the West Bank when they were abducted. Following a massive 18-day search operation by the Israel Defense Forces (dubbed "Operation Brother's Keeper"), their bodies were found in a shallow grave near the town of Halhul on June 30, 2014.  Israeli authorities identified two Hamas members from Hebron, Marwan Qawasmeh and Amer Abu Aisha, as the primary perpetrators. They were killed in a standoff with Israeli security forces in September 2014. Another man, Hussam Qawasmeh, was arrested for orchestrating and financing the attack and was sentenced to three life terms in prison. 
  
                    Rocket fire from Gaza in Israel
• Rocket Fire: In the lead-up to the operation, Hamas and other militant groups intensified rocket and mortar attacks on Israeli cities and towns, reaching as far north as Haifa, placing millions of Israelis within range of fire and creating a constant threat to civilian life.
• Operation Protective Edge was a 50-day military operation launched by Israel in the Gaza Strip from July 8 to August 26, 2014. In Jewish and Israeli history, the operation is viewed as a defensive war to protect Israeli citizens from incessant rocket fire and to destroy a network of offensive cross-border tunnels built by the Hamas and other terrorist organizations in Gaza. Defensive Justification: The Israeli government and the majority of the Jewish public perceived the operation as an act of self-defense, a necessary measure to restore security and stability for its citizens, a right they argue every sovereign nation possesses. IDF tried to stop what they are fighting against today.  

The return of Goldin comes as Hamas tries to obtain the release of around 200 of its terrorists trapped in tunnels in Rafah, on the Israeli side of the yellow line. Jared Kushner, representing the U.S., is reportedly pressuring Israel to provide the terrorists with safe passage instead of eliminating them. 

The return of Goldin gives Prime Minister Netanyahu some political room to accept a negotiated outcome of the situation. Turkey said yesterday that it is working to secure safe passage for 200 "civilians" (which are Hamas terrorists) trapped in Rafah, after being instrumental in orchestrating the release of Goldin. Hamas has said that its fighters will not surrender.

Understand this.  There are very few Jews in the whole world, about 14 million, with about 6 million making up Israel and 6 million in the USA and about 2 million throughout the rest of the world. Muslims make up approximately 24% to 26% of the world's population, with some estimates for 2025 being around 24.1% and others for 2020 being 25.6%. This figure represents over 2 billion people globally, making Islam the world's second-largest religion after Christianity. We know there is no end to terrorists popping up no matter how many of them died in battle with Israel, who does everything possible to keep their own soldiers safe, thus a smaller number usually killed in battle. Hamas actually seems to want a high number of their own killed in order to make Israel look bad !  Israel is fighting against a people wanting to destroy them and their country.  It's not going to happen. Israel's motto is LIFE, to Life, l'chaim !  If someone wants to kill them, they defend themselves.  The enemy of Israel shouldn't mess with them, or they will get themselves killed. 

Today is the USA's Veteran's Day.  Let's remember all these veterans who have fought for our Democracies in order to protect us.