Throughout the night and into the morning, negotiations regarding a hostage deal have continued in Israel. Unfortunately, based on media leaks (whose credibility remains highly questionable), the current situation appears to involve one-sided concessions from Israel, which seems to be retreating from its positions one by one. This does not resemble negotiations in which both sides compromise and receive something in return; rather, it seems to be a series of outright surrenders.
At present, it appears that all the pressure is being exerted solely on the Israeli government — from Trump and his advisors, Biden and his team, Israeli media, protesters, and others. Meanwhile, no such pressure seems to be placed on Hamas. Hamas has no hostile media outlets criticising its decisions, no protesters, and is apparently unimpressed by either Biden or Trump. As a result, the list of Israeli concessions continues to grow:
1,300 terrorists will be released in the first stage of the deal! The IDF will withdraw from the security perimeter surrounding the Gaza area occupied by the enemy. The IDF will abandon the Netzarim corridor, which currently divides the Gaza Strip into two parts. The IDF will leave the Rafah checkpoint! And within the first few days, large quantities of equipment, including bulldozers, will be brought in through it from Egypt. Hundreds of murderers will be freed!
In the first stage, at least the top terror leaders will not be released, but it is highly likely that in the second stage (once Israel has no leverage left), they too will be freed, along with dozens of other bloodthirsty terrorists who will undoubtedly begin planning new attacks immediately. Israel is even committing not to pursue the Hamas leaders! Essentially, a type of insurance policy for the most ruthless killers! Additionally, Israel will not arrest those being released...
Israel has also given up on obtaining a list of hostages. In other words, their current condition remains unknown — whether they are alive or, Heaven forbid, deceased. During the first stage, pressure on Israel will continue to extract even more concessions for the second stage. Predictably, the scoundrels in Hamas will fully exploit this situation, continuing to manipulate us by claiming that we have „not conceded enough“ and delaying the release of the next group of hostages.
In short: this is not a hostage release deal in line with international practices, nor does it even resemble past Israeli agreements, such as the disgraceful Shalit deal. This is far worse. Essentially, it is a capitulation agreement.
This has nothing to do with the „release of hostages“ or the „price“ of each hostage — because what is being demanded of us is far greater.
They are demanding that we relinquish all our hard-won achievements against Hamas, gained through a bloody and gruelling war. They are demanding that we allow Hamas to remain in power. They are demanding that we allow Hamas to rebuild its strength, receiving billions of dollars in the third stage of the deal. They are demanding that we essentially withdraw from the Gaza sector almost entirely after having sustained thousands of wounded and 1,900 killed across all fronts!
Should we celebrate that they haven’t yet demanded we abandon Haifa, Tel Aviv, and Jerusalem as well?
Though, perhaps, if they had demanded that Israel hand over Tel Aviv, the supporters of the disorderly protests on Kaplan Street might finally realise that this is not a deal, but a capitulation.
We are left with only one course of action: to pray and ask the Almighty to give strength to our leaders so they can withstand the immense pressure. All we can do now is recite the Psalms of David together, give heartfelt charity, and pray for just one thing — the rescue of our hostages through a reasonable deal that does not jeopardise the safety of the entire nation, our children, and future generations!