ZIKRON YAAKOV, Israel (AP) – Tal Khaltouf has a jagged scar on her chest, one of 18 stab wounds on her body from a brutal attack that killed her friend in a Jerusalem suburb in 2010. Next to the 7 centimeter (3 inch) mark is a dog tag inscribed with the words “Our hearts are in Gaza”, a popular symbol of support for the ceasefire exchange. israeli hostage for Palestinian prisoners of war.
Friday, while many people were celebrating. Israel and Hamas agreement rear two years warKhaltouf looked at the list of Palestinian prisoners scheduled for release and saw the name of Iyad Hassan Hussein Fatahta. He was one of three men convicted of trying to kill her and killing her friend, American tourist Christine Luken.
Survivors like Khartov and the families of those killed in the attacks have faced tough dilemmas throughout the war. Should we release the killers of our loved ones at the risk of future attacks, or should we leave the hostages held in Gaza to their fate?
“I feel excited, hopeful and happy that the hostages are coming home,” said Hartuf, whose name has been changed as part of his rehabilitation. “But you can still feel angry, you can still feel betrayed, and you can still feel empty. They’re not mutually exclusive,” she says.
No one in the Israeli government tried to inform her that he might be released. She received a list from a journalist.
By Monday Hamas plans to begin disengagement 48 remaining Israeli hostages Approximately 20 of them are believed to be alive in Gaza. Israel plans to release about 2,000 Palestinians, including senior militants convicted of deadly attacks, as well as those convicted of lesser crimes and those held without charge in so-called administrative detention.
“We have to bring them back.”
Twenty-two years ago, a suicide bomber blew up Bus 37 in the northern Israeli city of Haifa, killing 17 people, including nine children walking home from school.
Israel has convicted five Palestinians of aiding and abetting the bombers. The three were released in 2011 as part of an exchange for Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, who had been held in Gaza. The fourth was released during the previous ceasefire earlier this year.
Yossi Zour, whose 17-year-old son Assaf was killed in the 2003 Haifa bombing, has long been a leader in the movement against liberation, particularly the 2011 exchange in which 1,027 Palestinian prisoners were released.
Zuhl remembers being heartbroken as he watched buses full of convicted extremists leaving prison.
Releases under the Shalit deal include: Yahya Sinwarled the attack on October 7, 2023 that sparked the war. Before becoming the supreme leader of Hamas, Shinwar killed by Israeli forces last year.
“It was my failure to protect my son, and now I am unable to prevent his murderer from getting out of prison,” Zuhl said.
But when fellow activists contacted him to protest the ceasefire agreement in the current war, he declined.
“Given the number of people and the age group who were taken on October 7, we have come to the conclusion that it is not worth fighting this time,” he said. “We have to bring them back.”
The worst hostage crisis faced by Israel
Hamas-led militants kill around 1,200 people October 7th attack They also abducted 251 people.
Israel’s retaliatory strikes have killed more than 67,000 Palestinians, the majority of them women and children, the Gaza Health Ministry said, but it did not say how many of the dead were militants.
In the previous ceasefire this year, Israel Freed approximately 1,800 Palestinians, including about 230 people serving long sentences for deadly assault. In exchange for 25 hostages and the bodies of eight others. Most prisoners convicted of deadly assault were deported.
This time, Israel is approx. 250 prisoners are serving long sentences So are the approximately 1,700 people detained from Gaza over the past two years and held without charge.
After their previous release, jubilant crowds welcomed their return, adding to the pain of the families of Israeli victims.
“I want to make Israel a safer place.”
Ron Carman’s 17-year-old daughter Tal, a popular high school senior who loved singing and graffiti, was also killed on the 37 bus. Taru still cries when he remembers her.
He says he feels better when he focuses on his activities.
He is adamantly opposed to the release of Palestinian prisoners, saying it is to prevent attacks.
“We want to make Israel a safer place,” he said. He said the October 7 attack happened “because of the government’s mistake” in releasing Sharit militants.
“If at some point young people know that if they successfully kill an Israeli they will be released, why shouldn’t they do that?” Kehlman said. “Israel needs to break free of the equation of freeing hostages by freeing terrorists.”
Decisions to maintain empathy
Ever since receiving the news that her attacker would soon be released, Khaltouf felt angry and betrayed. At such times, she pulls out photos of the hostages and their distressed parents from her phone and looks into their eyes.
“It doesn’t melt me, but it creates room for empathy and reminds me that there’s another side of the coin,” she said.
“It doesn’t erase my feelings of anger towards the Israeli government, their sloppiness for not even contacting me, and my feelings of betrayal towards Western governments for not holding Hamas accountable, but it does alleviate some of my sense of injustice,” she said.
The ability to move back and forth between these heartbreaking stories and hold space for both is something Hartuv hopes more people emulate. She feels that Israeli discourse is so fixated on hostages that those who question the price of the deal are sidelined. She does not want to call off the deal, but would like to see some recognition of the price that Israel, especially Israel, has had to pay and fears that this could lead to further attacks once the hostages are returned.
“Releasing the hostages becomes even more wonderful when you understand how necessary this is for Israel and how difficult it is,” she said.
