Barely remarked upon in our fair land, distracted as we are by the fascinating saga of Roman Polasnski's persecution, last week the Israeli gov't, lead by that would-be Churchill of our time PM Bibi Natanyahu, agreed to exchange 20 accused Pally terrorists [most of them female] being held in Israeli custody for a video of Corporal Gilad Shalit, kidnapped in 2006.


Call me untrusting, but it seems like the "terrorists" have won that round. How does any Israeli gov't justify that decision?  I know, i know, it's merel;y a sign of the great respect that Israel holds for human life.


Which also makes me wonder, how bogus must those charges of terrorism have been originally?  To just hand over those accused Pally terrorists so easily, well, something smells  rotten in Dimona.


Wouldn't it be ironic if some of those released Pallys ran afoul of the US in Iraq or Afghanistan and were kited off to Guantanmo and other black sites?  Wonder if any of our brave Solons and Paladins in Congress and the Executive would wax stentorian and raise a stink? Waxman?  Harman?  Cantor? Reid?  Pelosi?  Dennis Ross? Schumer?   I'm pretty sure the answer would be no.  I imagine the silence in ths here fine forum would be impressive as well.  No doubt "blame Obama" would be the quick and easy  answer.


And we also wonder, had any other country agreed to exchange 20 accused Pally terrorists for one of its abducted citizens, let alone just an video tape of said abductee, how loudly and how widely would that decision have been denounced by the usual suspects  in Israel and the various Likudist echo chambers in this fair land and assorted other countries?  Just imagine if the French had done this!


Who knows, maybe there's yet another leg or two in this exchange, and Roman Polanski might be liberated from the cruel and anti-Semitic clutches of the Swiss and a potentailly biased and vindictive US crimanl justice system.  The very same one that acquitted OJ in 1995.  At least Bernard-Henri Levy and his assorted dimwitted  playmates could then rest easier.


With absolutely no sense of shame, though, our Likudist allies seek to have their cake and to eat it too, and attempt to blame former US POTUS Carter for negotiating this deal.  Why, I wonder, if this deal is so outrageous, does the Israeli gov't simply not repudiate it?  The silence on that point is deafening.


I suspect, as in all things intended to influence the great unwashed masses of the US public, Israel and it's numerous acolytes and adepts speak with an extremely sharp and point forked tongue.


I hope, after this curious turn of events, that we can be given a well-deserved, albeit no doubt very brief, respite from lectures about Israel's stalwart role in the fight against terror, and how the US should study closely their various methods, yada, yada, yada.


I hate to say it, but the phrase
"double-standard" comes to mind - one standard of concern and action  for Israelis abducted by Pally terrorists, and another, far less generous standard for everybody else unlucky enough to run afoul of politically motivated hostage-taking in the Middle East.  


Yep, i'm sure glad that the US is  allied in an needless and pointless war on terror with brave-hearted, straight-dealing, virtuous warriors like Bibi and the Likud.




Report: Carter Engineered Terrorists-for-Video Swap

by Maayana Miskin



Former United States President Jimmy Carter played an active role in the Israel-Hamas exchange last week in which Israel released 20 female terrorists in exchange for a short video of hostage soldier Gilad Shalit. Carter's involvement was revealed by senior Hamas terrorist Mahmoud A-Zahar in an interview with the Arab-language daily Al-Kuds al-Arabi.

While current U.S. politicians do not speak to Hamas, which is recognized internationally as a terrorist group, Carter has had frequent contact with the group as a private citizen. He has met with Hamas's Gaza head, Ismail Haniyeh, and its foreign leader, Khaled Mashaal.

In December of 2008 Carter met with Mashaal and advised him on the price to demand in exchange for Shalit. Carter has also met with Shalit's family, and in a visit during June 2009, reported that he had delivered a letter from them to Hamas to give to the captive soldier.

Carter has pushed Israel to open direct negotiations with Hamas, and during his June visit, expressed disappointment in Israel's lack of empathy for Hamas's aims. “Unfortunately, Israelis don't remember that there are 11,700 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails... They don't understand Hamas's aim to bring about the release of at least some of these prisoners,” he said in a meeting with members of Gush Shalom.

Carter expressed sympathy with Palestinian Authority terrorists held in Israel, telling Gush Shalom members that they fared worse than Shalit during their incarceration.

Also Involved: Germany

A-Zahar also credited German mediators with bringing about the swap of terrorists for video footage. The swap proves that German involvement in the Shalit affair could bring about results, he said.










-- Modified on 10/5/2009 7:23:11 PM