Tell the world he's coming home

Many years ago, on July 4 1976 an elite commando unit of the Israeli Defense Forces stormed the Entebbe, Uganda airport and freed the 102 Israeli hostages held there after they were hijacked on an Air France Flight by terrorist palestinian organizations. It was a bold and daring raid by the Israelis, indeed a national victory that the entire country celebrated.

But of course, as always, the joy felt was tempered somewhat by tragedy: some of the hostages were killed in the crossfire of the raid; one hostage, Dora Bloch, was brutally murdered by the Ugandans in the aftermath; and Yonatan Netanyahu, a commander of the raid was killed in the firefight between the commandos and the terrorists.

After the raid, Yehoram Gaon came out with a song that became very popular at the time and now is considered an Israeli classic (Lyrics by Telma Eligon Rose, music by Dovi Seltzer). There is a line in the song that to me describes perfectly life in this little country of mine. Living here in Israel, it is a line I think of often. On this historical day, I especially feel it. The line goes like this:

"עצבונה וששונה הם שתי וערב בבגד יומה"

"[a country whose]...sadness and happiness
are interwoven into the fabric of her daily life".

I don't think I need to review for you all that is happening here today. That our soldier, Gilad Shalit, "everybody's child", is coming home. That the Israeli government decided to pay a very heavy price for his release. That out of the 1027 prisoners that are being released in exchange for one Gilad, about 400 of them are true murderers and masterminds of horrific terrorist attacks. That since the deal has been announced families of the victims of these murderers have appealed to the supreme court to take the murderers off the list. That the supreme court said, no. That there are people who say the price is to heavy for one soldier. That the deal emboldens the terrorists. And that there are others who say we are a country who can't leave our soldiers behind. That we are a country with values and that human life is valuable. That we are the only country in this neighborhood of the world that values life, whereas our neighbors value death. That our soldiers serving and being drafted today need to know that we will do anything to get them back should, G-d forbid, another soldier be kidnapped.

I read it all. The papers, the blogs, the opinions. And I go back and forth. When I see the families of victims of terror in so much pain today, my heart goes out to them. One of the masterminds being released today was responsible for the Sbarro terror attack in August, 2001, in which Liat's teacher, Morah Shoshana Greenbaum was slaughtered. She was an only child, pregnant with her first child and this deal likely pours salt on a wound that has never, that will never close for her parents.

But yet, Gilad. How can we leave him there any longer? He needs to come home, to be held by his parents and embraced by his people.

Today is one of those quintessential Israeli days: exhilaration and heartbreak, tears of both joy and sadness intermingling for all that Gilad has been through, all that our nation and our country has been through.

Gilad, you have been "everybody's child" for five long years. We have cherished and missed you without even really knowing you. Now that you are coming back, we will give you back to your parents, Noam and Aviva. You belong to them.

I for one, give you back wholeheartedly and with love.

********

(Here are the words to the song Eretz Tzvi, along with an accompanying video I found on You Tube. All the words are appropriate today).

בחצי הלילה הם קמו

והיכו בקצה העולם
כבני רשף חשו הרחיקו עוף
להשיב את כבוד האדם

אל ארץ צבי
אל דבש שדותיה
אל הכרמל והמדבר
אל עם אשר לא יחשה
שאת בניו לא יפקיר לזר,
אל ארץ צבי שבהריה
פועמת עיר מדור לדור
אל ארץ אם לטבורה
קשורים בניה בטוב וברע.

בחצי הלילה עוברת
בשדותינו רוח שרב
ערבה אילמת תרכין אז ראש
על אשר עם שחר לא שב

אל ארץ צבי
אל דבש שדותיה
אל הכרמל והמדבר
אל עם אשר לא יחשה
שאת בניו לא יפקיר לזר,
אל ארץ צבי שדמעותיה
נושרות על שדה חמניות
שעצבונה וששונה
הם שתי וערב בבגד יומה.

At midnight they arose
and struck at the edge of the world
like sons of ghosts they hurried to take flight
to return the honor of humanity

To the land of the deer (Israel)
to the honey of her fields
to the Carmel and the desert
to a nation who will not be silent/still
who will not abandon its sons to a foreigner
to the land of deer, in whose mountains
a city beats from generation to generation
to the motherland to whose navel
her children are bound in good and in bad

At midnight passes
in its/our fields a blistering wind
a willow then bows her head for those who
with the dawn did not come back

To the land of the deer (Israel)
to the honey of her fields
to the Carmel and the desert
to a nation who will not be silent/still
who will not abandon its sons to a foreigner
to the land of deer, whose tears
fall on a field of sunflowers
whose sadness and happiness
are interwoven in the fabric of her daily life.

Can you miss someone you've never met?

It's June 25, 2010. That means Gilad Shalit has been held in captivity by Hamas terrorists for four years.

Here in Israel, I often hear a phrase spoken by a family member, mostly parents, to describe another family member; they will say about the person, "our ________ ". So for example, when a mother talks about her daugher Keren, she will often say "קרן שלנו" ["Keren shelanu"]--our Keren. There's something very poignant about that to me.

Me, I can't believe our Gilad has been gone four years.

There is another soldier, an air force pilot whose name is Ron Arad. Arad was captured in 1986, and aside from some correspondence in 1987, has not been heard from since.

That's 24 years.

While tooling around the blogosphere, I found this video on Lion of Zion's blog. The song is "Keshetavo"--"When you will come back". On that day, the singer says "נשיר ברון" [NaShir beron]--"We will sing with Ron". "Ron", Arad's first name, in Hebrew means joy.

I think the song is appropriate today, as we remember and pray for both Gilad and Ron.

May that day that we sing with Ron--and Gilad--come soon.

The saddest anniversay

June 25, 2006.

Three years ago today, Gilad was captured.

I've blogged about this before over here and here.

I don't have much to add. Just that I get sick to my stomach when I think of it. And that I feel guilty that I don't think about it all the time. I go about my business; I laugh, cry, work, play, am kind, lose my temper, share and sometimes don't. But Gilad is not on my mind constantly. He is never far away. Living here, he can't be. There are signs and posters everywhere, t-shirts, snippets in the news and many people working hard to get him freed. But he is not there always.

Even though I can't think of him constantly, his captivity touches my heart, as it does the heart of all Israelis. We acknowledge these milestone days, and wait and hope. Personally speaking I am glad that I don't have to be the one to choose to bargain with terrorists--truly a deal with the devil.

May G-d grant your freedom speedily, Gilad. We are waiting.

A father awaits his son's freedom.

1,000 days

What were you doing on June 25, 2006?

That year it was a Sunday. I was probably having a lazy day. Perhaps I was packing Liat up for camp, doing some shopping. It's likely that we were barb-b-q-ing, either at our home or at a friend's. I know I was thinking about our upcoming month-long vacation in Israel in August; we had been planning and saving for this vacation for over two years.

While you and I are were going about our business, early on Sunday morning Gilad was captured by Palestinian terrorists who attacked an Israeli army post on the Israeli side of the southern Gaza Strip border after having crossed through an underground tunnel near the Kerem Shalom border crossing. 1,000 days have passed since then.

What did you do today?

What do you think Gilad did?

But yet, Gilad Schalit

Over at the Jerusalem Post, it's being reported that Hamas will agree to release Gilad Schalit, in exchange for 500 Palestinians being held by Israel, and for Israel to cease fire.



"Hamas wants the release of kidnapped IDF soldier Cpl. Gilad Schalit to be part of a package that would include, among other things, a mutual cease-fire with Israel and guarantees that Israel will not target Hamas leaders, sources close to Hamas said Sunday.

The sources said Hamas also wanted the package to include the reopening of the border crossings in the Gaza Strip and an end to international sanctions that have been in effect since Hamas came to power in January 2006."



Excuse me???? A cease fire from Israel??? Should I state the obvious??? Kassam rockets are raining down daily on Sderot and neighboring areas. That's every day. What the hell else are we supposed to do? Continue to allow it to happen? Continue to work from a position of weakness? What exactly is Hamas guaranteeing?

But yet, Gilad Schalit.

I want him home.

And the others, of course.

This morning, on my way to Mega, I was listening to a talk show (in Hebrew, she says with pride). The first person interviewed said that when you release Palestinian prisoners you need to look at who you are releasing; are you releasing the old, the infirm, the ones you are pretty sure will not murder more Israelis? This guy said there is a difference between releasing a 30-year-old terrorist, and a 60-year-old terrorist. Which is of course, laughable. I mean, isn't that age discrimination? What, a 60-year-old can't commit [mass] murder? How old is Osama Bin Ladin? Not exactly a spring chicken, and he seems spry enough to murder.

Didn't we used to have a policy of no negotiating with terrorists? But then they changed that to not releasing terrorists with "blood on their hands". And now....

Then the host of this radio program interviewed a former chayal [soldier] who had been seriously injured by a terrorist attack years ago. The chayal said, "Blood on your hands is blood on your hands". He went on to point out that if we release these prisoners now, we may get Gilad Schalit back. Of course his parents and all of Israel will rejoice. But at what price? What do we tell the parents of future victims whose children die at the hands of these terrorists we are imminently releasing?

And I live here now. This is real to me. Freed terrorists allowed to plot more killings just doesn't sit right with me.

That is the struggle of this country. Every soldier, every Jew so precious. Gilad suffers now. But we have to worry about the future as well. When we negotiate with murderers we are negotiating from a position of weakness. We are always paying a price for everything we do.

But yet, Gilad Schalit....