News Digest — 1/20/25
Netanyahu To Gal Hirsch: Tell Romi, Emily And Doron – ‘Welcome Home’
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke on Sunday (19th) with the Coordinator for the Hostages and Missing, BG (res) Gal Hirsch, the moment that hostages Romi Goren, Doron Steinbrecher, and Emili Damari were with IDF forces in the Gaza Strip.
Prime Minister: “Gal, do you hear me?”
Coordinator for the Hostages and the Missing: Yes, hello Prime Minister. I am at our operations center of the security establishment, with the Mossad, the ISA, the IDF and our entire establishment. I would like to report to you that our hostages have been transferred to our forces and, at these very moments, are crossing the border to our territory. I am very moved.”
Prime Minister: “have they already crossed the border into Israel?”
Coordinator for the Hostages and and the Missing: “It’s happening at these very moments. Right now.”
Prime Minister: “Then the moment it happens, report to me that they are in the territory of our state. This is a very moving day. These are the first hostages in this phase that we are returning home. Gal, I would like you to tell them: Romi, Doron and Emily – ‘“an entire nation embraces you. Welcome home.”
“I know, we all know, they have been through hell. They are emerging from darkness into light. They are really going from slavery to freedom. This moment was achieved thanks to the sacrifice and combat of our heroic fighters – heroes of Israel. I would also like to convey appreciation for all those who contributed to this effort. You will of course, leave your forward command centers open until we return them all – this is one of our objectives for the war. I emphasize to you and whoever is listening to me now – we will achieve all of our objectives for the war, “ continued Netanyahu.
“The most important thing at the moment is to see to it that the Authority in the Prime Minister’s Office provides them with the entire package, with all the support that is necessary for them to settle-in here at home. This is a great moment, an emotional moment. Many congratulations,” he concluded.
Coordinator for the Hostages and the Missing: “We will embrace them, and we will continue and bring them all.”
Prime Minister: “Thank you Gal. Thank you, well done. Thank you.”
Israel Frees 90 Terrorists In Exchange For Three Hostages
In accordance with the hostage deal, Israel freed 90 terrorists early Monday morning (20th) in exchange for the three hostages who were freed from Hamas captivity on Sunday (19th).
78 of the hostages will be released to the areas of Judea and Samaria, and 12 to eastern Jerusalem.
The Israel Prison Service said, “During the evening Sunday (19th), 90 terrorists were transferred from various detention facilities across the country to the ‘Ofer’ prison, accompanied by personnel from the Nachshon Unit of the Prison Service and with the assistance of the Israel Police. Upon completion of the reception procedures and receiving approval from the political authorities, all the terrorists were released from the ‘Ofer” prison and Jerusalem Detention Center.”
The release of the terrorists was delayed and only implemented after 1:00 a.m., Monday (20th) after officials involved in the release process claimed that representatives of the Red Cross were intentionally delaying the terrorist prisoner release.
“The Red Cross personnel, for reasons unclear, are dragging their feet and delaying the process of transferring the Palestinian prisoners. They claim there isn’t a match between the lists and it seems they want to portray Israel as not adhering to the schedules,” security sources told Channel 12 News.
Earlier, the IDF clarified that, as part of the agreement and preparations for the release of the terrorists and following the decisions of the political echelon in the Judea and Samaria area, the Central Command was reinforced with additional combat forces for defense and offense throughout Judea and Samaria.
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister’s Office released photos and video of the three female hostages freed Sunday (19th) meeting with their families at the Tel Hashomer Hospital in Ramat Gan.
Emily Damari, wrapped in an Israeli flag, can be seen emotionally embracing her relatives.
Romi Gonen is seen wrapped in a group hug by her family members as she walks into a hospital room decorated with fairy lights.
Doran Steinbrecher weeps as she embraces her family members in the halls of the hospital.
The three women are expected to stay in the hospital for several days for evaluation and treatment following 471 days in Hamas captivity. They were reunited first with their mothers next to the Gaza border, then flew to the hospital via helicopter to meet the rest of their families.
After Decade IDF Recovers Body Of Oron Shaul From Gaza
The IDF has recovered the remains of fallen soldier Oron Shaul from Gaza in a sophisticated covert operation. Multiple elite units, including Military Intelligence, Shayetet 13, and the Shin Bet security agency, collaborated in the complex recovery mission of Shaul, who fell in battle in Shejaiya during Operation Protective Edge on July 20, 2014.
Following conclusive forensic identification, IDF representatives informed the Shaul family of the recovery. Military officials also apprised the family of Hadar Goldin, who was also killed and kidnapped in the operation and whose remains continues to be held by Hamas, of the operation’s details.
“Tonight, prior to the ceasefire implementation, a precision operation by the Shin Bet and IDF returned the body of Golani fighter Oron Shaul to Israel,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced. “I extend my deepest support to the Shaul family and commend our security forces for their exceptional skill and bravery.”
Netanyahu emphasized the personal significance of the recovery: “The photograph of Oron Shaul and Hadar Goldin, may their memory be blessed, fallen during Operation Protective Edge in 2014, has maintained a constant presence in my office, serving as an unwavering reminder of our commitment to their return. While we have now fulfilled our promise to Oron, our mission continues until Hadar Goldin is also brought home. We remain resolute in our commitment to secure the return of all our captives – both the living and the fallen.”
It Wasn’t A Deal – It Was A Crime – Alan M. Dershowitz
The decision by the Israeli government to make significant concessions to the Hamas kidnappers should never be called a “deal.” It was an extortion. Would you call it a deal if somebody kidnapped your child and you “agreed” to pay ransom to get her back? The kidnapping was a crime. And the extortionate demand was an additional crime.
The proper description of what occurred is that Israel, pressured by the US, capitulated to the unlawful and extortionate demands of Hamas as the only way of saving the lives of kidnapped babies, mothers and other innocent, mostly civilian, hostages. If an armed robber puts a gun to your head and says, “Your money or your life,” your decision to give him your money would not be described as a deal.
When a terrorist group “negotiates” with a democracy, it always has the upper hand. The terrorists are not constrained by morality, law or truth. A democracy, on the other hand, must comply with the rules of law and must listen to the pleas of the hostages’ families.
The heart rules the brain, as it often does in moral democracies that value the immediate saving of the lives of known people over the future deaths of hypothetical people whose identities we do not know.
The writer is Professor of Law, Emeritus at Harvard Law School. (Gatestone Institute)
A Deal That Keeps Hamas In Power Is Meaningless – Khaled Abu Toameh
Those who think that the Iran-backed Palestinian terrorist group Hamas will abandon its Jihad (holy war) to murder more Jews and destroy Israel in the aftermath of the recent ceasefire hostage agreement are mistaken. The deal does not require Hamas to disarm or cede control over Gaza. To Hamas, this is just another deal similar to ceasefire agreements reached with Israel after previous rounds of fighting over the past 20 years.
Hamas supporters in Khan Younis took to the streets to celebrate the ceasefire-hostage deal and chanted: “We will go to Jerusalem, we will sacrifice millions of martyrs!” Hamas supporters in Ramallah, the de facto capital of the Palestinian Authority, chanted slogans in support of slain Hamas leaders Yahya Sinwar and Mohammed Deif, the masterminds of the October 7 carnage.
A ceasefire-hostage deal that allows Hamas to remain in power means that it is only a matter of time before the terrorist groups attempt to launch another October 7-style attack on Israel. Hamas’ defiant statements show that its leadership is willing to sacrifice more of its people to fulfill its objective of destroying Israel. The only deal that will actually bring peace is one where Hamas ceases to exist.
The writer, a veteran Israeli journalist, is a senior fellow at the Gatestone Institute and the Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs.
Nobody Should Be Surprised When Israel Resumes Its War – Col. Richard Kemp
Netanyahu’s objective remains total victory over Hamas and Iran’s terrorist axis that seeks the annihilation of the Jewish state. Having largely eliminated Hamas’ military capability over the last 15 months, we have not reached the stage where the priority is to free the remaining 94 hostages.
It has so far proven impossible to release more than a handful by direct military force. The presence of the hostages has been a drag-anchor in the campaign and prevented Hamas’ total destruction. The terrorists know this only too well: that was exactly the reason they kidnapped them on Oct. 7.
Those who are horrified by this deal are right to highlight its grave risks. It seems to involve the release of more than a thousand Palestinian terrorists in exchange for 33 Israeli hostages. And a cessation will give Hamas some opportunity to regroup and rebuild its capabilities.
Above all, it leaves Hamas in a position to maintain its stranglehold on Gaza’s population. That would certainly be disastrous, and the eventual eradication or survival of Hamas will be the true measure of the success of this ceasefire.
The writer, a former commander of British forces in Afghanistan, was chairman of the UK’s national crisis management committee. COBRA. (Telegraph – UK)
German Chancellor: Germany Must Never Turn The Page On The Holocaust
German Chancellor Olef Scholz emphasized on Sunday (19th) the importance of preserving the memory of the Holocaust, acknowledging Germany’s historical responsibility for the atrocities committed during World War II, reported AFP.
Speaking at an event organized by the Jewish community in Frankfurt to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, the largest Nazi concentration camp, Scholz firmly rejected the idea of moving on from this chapter of history.
“I am against turning the page, saying that was long ago,” he told attendees.
Scholz stressed that remembering the Holocaust is a responsibility that must be upheld across generations in Germany. We keep alive the memory of the civilizational split of the shoah (Holocaust) committed by Germans, which was passed down to each generation in our country again and again, our responsibility will not end,” said Scholz.
He highlighted the personal dimension of the tragedy, describing the Holocaust as “millions of individual stories,” involving people “like you and me – it is also this awareness that we must pass down in our remembrance.”
The Chancellor noted that this collective memory must be built upon “indisputable facts that everyone in pir country must face regardless of origin, family history or religion.”
Scholz also voiced concern over the “worrying and alarming normalization” of anti-Semitism, hate, and far-right ideologies, particularly on social media platforms where such rhetoric is often accompanied by calls to violence.
Incidents of anti-Semitism in Germany have been on the rise since Hamas’ October 7, 2023 attack on Israel. One of these incidents was a synagogue in the capital of Berlin firebombed by two assailants.
In an attempt to tackle the rising anti-Semitism , Germany’s parliament in November passed a resolution calling for ending public funding to any organization “that spreads anti-Semitism, calls into question Israel’s right to exist or calls for a boycott of Israel.”
It also recommends that individuals responsible for anti-Semitic actions in schools and universities should face disciplinary measures, including exclusion from classes or expulsion.”
