Crying tears of joy from one eye, and tears of grief from the other

Israel is celebrating the release and homecoming of three hostages this past week, and anticipating the release of four more this coming Saturday. At the same time Israel is grieving for the hostages and families that are not on the list of the 33 to be released in this stage of the current deal with Hamas. That's assuming that Hamas does not violate the deal. 

It's expected that at least one third of the hostages to be released in this current six-week phase are already dead. At least their families will have closure. But at such a price. 

To secure the release of the first three, Israel had to release 90 hardened Palestinian Arab terrorists, some of whose victims are still alive, and others whose victims were murdered, and whose families are having their wounds and grief being ripped wide open.  

Literally, the nation is crying tears of joy from one eye, and tears of grief from the other. One of many vivid examples of this is a recent conversation on the Inspiration from Zion podcast with the father of a hostage who is not on any list to be released any time soon, and the survivor of a terrorist attack whose Christian American friend was murdered, and whose killers may be released as part of this deal. The gamut of emotions is as wide as can be, seemingly impossible, but it is the reality. 

The night that three Israeli hostages were released from 470 days in captivity by Hamas in Gaza, Tel Aviv was bustling with thousands celebrating at “Hostage Square,” the place that’s become the nucleus of prayers and protests, all advocating for the release of all the hostages. That night Tel Aviv was also hopping, with restaurants and bars along its posh streets full of Israelis living life. It’s a huge paradox, in all cases made possible by the selflessness of IDF soldiers who have been fighting terrorists in Gaza and Lebanon and Yemen and Syria for 15 months.  

More than 400 soldiers have been killed in combat since the ground war began in Gaza, giving their lives to pressure Hamas, to weaken their hold on Gaza and Gazans, to find and rescue hostages, and so that young Israelis out on a Sunday night can do so without a thought. Indeed, many of the young people out for a drink this mid-January evening spent time in Gaza and Lebanon themselves over the past year plus. 

The paradoxes and range of emotions are like a life and death roller coaster, with the highest elation and the lowest fears.  

Making matters worse, Israelis know that the released terrorists have not suddenly become peaceful lovers of Israel and the Jewish people. They will try to kill again. We know who the hostages are, who the victims are, who their families are, and for whom the trauma of all this are present.  What we don’t know is who the future victims will be of the terrorists being released.

Here’s just one grotesque example: On February 7, 2019, Arafat Irafaiya, set out to commit a premeditated terrorist attack dressed as a religious Jew. He arrived at an isolated place in a Jerusalem forest, and came across 19-year-old Ori Ansbacher. Irafaiya stabbed her repeatedly and dragged her 150 meters while she was still alive, then raped her. During the rape, he continued to stab her until he almost decapitated her.

During his trial, he expressed pride, even glee, in Ori’s rape and murder. “I made my parents immensely proud of what I did,” Irafaiya bragged. The judge asked, “How do murder and rape cause pride?” “I didn't just rape someone, I murdered a Jewish woman. You won't be able to understand because our thinking is different. If you ask an Arab if he would be happy to kill a Jew... you will see that I did everything an Arab dream of.” 

The judge questioned further, “Why didn't you do it long ago if you wanted it so much?”

“That's not what Allah had planned for me (laughing). Murder is the best and most important thing I've done. If she had stayed alive, it would have meant I failed in what I had planned and failed in the mission. I planned to enter Jerusalem through the forest … to kill several Jews and not just one, but when I was there, I saw that Allah had sent me the Jewish woman, and I realized that I had to kill her. This is the fate that Allah summoned me to. I planned to enter a place wearing a kippah (religious head covering) so that they would think I was Jewish and stab as many Jews as possible to kill them. If I hadn't met the young girl along the way, I would have entered Jerusalem to carry out the attack and assassinate the Jews.”

Without a moment of shame or remorse, Irafaiya continued, “After murdering her, I stayed near the body for a while, waiting for other Jews to come to surprise them, stab them with a knife, and kill them... If I had died during the attack to kill more Jews, for me, it is a blessed thing because I would have died in the blood of Allah.

These are the terrorists being released. Tears of grief, and worry about who will be their next victims.

Despite the grief, we celebrate the release of hostages kidnapped against their will and held in unspeakable conditions for 475 days.  Obscenely, the terrorists celebrate the release of those who committed murder, rape, and other crimes against humanity from blowing up buses and cafes, just like the ones in which the young Israelis sat in Tel Aviv in this week. 

The terrorists see this, they follow our media to see how they can inflict the greatest trauma, taking advantage of our “weakness” of celebrating, valuing, and preserving life. We follow their media and celebrations in disgust, seeing how they worship a god of death, revering their terrorist leaders as role models. 

As the terrorists are being released and celebrated, are there no Gazans, or Palestinian Arabs in general, brave enough to say that their terror needs to stop, that it is not just immoral and wrong, but that it has only brought them unimaginable suffering.  Is there anyone amid the orgy of evil being celebrated who will stand up and say “Halas,” stop! 

Even as the deal may go forward, it’s imperative to press Hamas to release all the remaining hostages unconditionally. 

With the range of emotions and events literally changing daily, the Genesis 123 Foundation will be hosting a webinar Saturday January 25 at 1:00pm eastern with a detailed update and opportunity to ask questions from a first hand perspective.