The Other Gilad?

BY CARMIA

$10,000,000 for any information which leads to the finding of the missing soldier Majdi Halabi

It's been almost four and half years since the disappearance of the Israeli soldier Majdi Halabi. The then 19-year old soldier from the Druze town of Daliyat-el-Carmel was on his way to his base, but never made it to his destination. He hasn't been heard from since, and the Israeli public hasn't heard much about him, either. While everyone knows the names Gilad Shalit or Ron Arad, hardly anyone could tell you who Majdi Halabi is.

The fact that for a while already there has been a $10,000,000 reward on any information that leads to his discovery hasn't brought about any results either. You might see a sign about him if you are the Horev Centre in Haifa or pass by the University of Haifa, or catch the huge billboard up at the entrance of Halabi's hometown. That's how I learned about Halabi a few years ago. Someone has opened a Facebook profile in his name to "support the family." The Hana Fitness Centre in Daliyat-el-Carmel held a "sports event," sponsored by Speedo and others, on the fourth year anniversary of his disappearance. These all seem to organized by family members and fellow townspeople. But that's all. It just doesn't seem to be enough for a state that prides itself on its high concern for its soldiers.

Qassams on Gaza and the Dream of Palestinian Statehood

Image: Map Showing Entry Points into Gaza (Source: Palestine Trade Center)

Once in a while, we read accounts of qassam rockets landing inside the Gaza Strip. Today, a mortar shell apparently hit a power cable that provides electricity for the Hamas-ruled territory. Unlike the April 9, 2008 attacks, which deliberately targeted the Nahal Oz fuel depot used by Israel to transport gas to Gaza, this latest incident appears to have been an accident. But many of the Palestinian mortar attacks and cross-border raids into Israel have struck precisely those points through which the territory receives supplies crucial to its inhabitants' lives. How can Hamas seriously complain about fuel or food shortages when its own actions directly threaten the infrastructure used to provide these necessities to Gazans?

Of course, in a larger sense, every qassam attack on Israel is an own-goal by the Palestinians. The rocket attacks that have plagued southern Israel since the withdrawal from Gaza in August 2005 as well as the cross-border raids such as the one that led to the kidnapping of Gilad Shalit on June 25, 2006, imperil the likelihood of a future withdrawal from the West Bank more than anything else. The Gaza evacuation showed that both Israel's leadership as well as the majority of the Israeli population support a withdrawal from much of the territory captured in 1967. But no responsible leadership can authorize such evacuations, when it results in more attacks on Israeli citizens inside the country's recognized borders. 

The Palestinians and their supporters will argue that settlement expansion and the IDF's actions in the territories have had a similar effect in undermining Palestinian trust as the qassams (and the suicide bombings before them) have had on Israelis. This kind of argument might fly in academia, but it is a dead end, especially for anyone who is serious about Palestinian statehood. Israel is in a position to grant Palestinians the land that they need for an independent state in the West Bank and Gaza. It depends on Israel to realize these ambitions. But the Palestinian dream of statehood requires the Palestinian organizations to demonstrate their trustworthiness to Israel, not vice versa.

The best analogy might be that of a lender and a hopeful borrower. Even if the lender has failed to repay debts to other people or to the would-be debtor himself, s/he is still the one with the capital that the debtor hopes to borrow. In order to procure the loan, it is incumbent upon the debtor to demonstrate to the lender ability to return the principal and interest in the future. Everything else is irrelevant. 

I hope that my analogy, which equates Israel with a lender and the Palestinians with a debtor will not occasion yet another self-righteous diatribe on the alleged immorality of the Zionist enterprise. Those who believe that Israel does not have a right to exist or to be a "lender," are living in a dream world. They may continue idling away their time with stirring, moralistic pronouncements. But they would do well to remember that no state has been created on moral claims alone - not even the State of Israel, which, post-WWII had a stronger claim to a moral right for its existence than any other country in the world. Statehood is achieved by those who combine moral vision with pragmatic politics and, most importantly, attention to the contingencies of history and the vagaries of fortune.

Signs of Life from Gilad Shalit

Earlier, I heard the Gilad Shalit tape that was released by Hamas today. It was painful to listen to him speaking from captivity, and even harder to think of what his parents must be going through. Obviously there is some joy too, as this is the first sign of life that we have from the young soldier since he was kidnapped exactly one year ago. But it is not at all clear whether he will be released before his twenty-first birthday on August 28.

Here is a transcript of the tape; it is slightly modified as I noticed that there were some small mistakes in Ha'aretz's. My (very literal) translation is below.

אני גלעד בן נועם שליט הכלוא אצל כתאיב אל שאהיד עז א-דין אל קסאם. אמא ואבא,אחותי ואחי , חברי בצה"ל. אני מוסר לכם מתוך הכלא דרישת שלום ואת געגועי לכולכם. עברה עלי שנה שלמה בתוך הכלא, ועדיין מצבי הבריותי מידרדר. ואני חייב לאשפוז ממושך בבית חולים .אני מצטער על חוסר ההתעניינות של הממשלה הישראלית וצה"ל ואי-היענותם בעניין שלי ובדרישות כתאיב אל קסאם. זה ברור שהם חייבים להיענות לדרישות אלו בכדי שאני אשתחרר כבר מהכלא. ובמיוחד שאני הייתי במבצע צבאי מתוך הוראה צבאית. ולא הייתי סוחר סמים. וכמו שיש לי הורים, אמא ואבא, גם לאלפי האצירים הפלשתינאים יש אמהות ואבות, שחייבים להחזיר להם את בניהם. יש לי תקווה גדולה לממשלתי שתתעניין בי יותר ותיענה לדרישות אל-מוג'אהידין. הרב"ט גלעד שליט.

I am Gilad, son of Noam Shalit, imprisoned with the Katayeb al-Shaheed az a-Din al-qassam. Ima and Abba [mom and dad], my sister and my brother, my friends in the IDF. I convey my greetings to and my longing for you from jail. A whole year has passed over me inside the jail, and the condition of my health is declining. And I require long-term treatment in the hospital. I regret the lack of interest by the Israeli government and the IDF and their indifference in/to my matter and the demands of Katayeb al-Qassam. It is clear that they need to accept these demands in order for me to be released already from the jail. And especially since I was on a military mission under military order. And I was not a drug dealer [emphasis added].* And just as I have parents, Ima and Abba, so do the thousands of Palestinian detainees ['atzirim] have mothers and fathers, that [sic] their sons have to be returned to them. I have great hope that my government will interest itself in me more and accept the demands of el[sic - I am pretty sure he does not say "ha-mujahedin"]-mujahedin.

*This is a reference to the case of the Israeli businessman Elhanan Tanenbaum, who was lured to Lebanon by Hizbullah agents who apparently enticed him with promises of money he could earn through a drug deal. Tanenbaum was swapped for several high-profile prisoners by Ariel Sharon in 2004.

Shalit is being held by the same criminal gang that abducted the BBC reporter Alan Johnston. A video of the Johnston was released shortly before the Shalit tape. The group holding them is rumored to be headed by a certain Mumtaz Durmush, affiliated with al Qaeda. Immediately after the Hamas take-over in the Gaza strip, there were reports of clashes between this group and Hamas's armed forces. However, it appears that the two have come to some kind of agreement, although tensions remain. Hamas is clearly trying to use the tape to gain leverage for itself - to force Israel to its knees - and the captors are playing along, since any gains achieved will also reflect positively on them.

The tape is aimed squarely at Israeli public opinion. It is an effort to build up public pressure to force the government to meet the demands of both the Hamas government on one hand and the kidnappers on the other.

On the tape, Shalit is reading from a prepared text. Sometimes the pauses are awkward. It obviously does not sound like a fluid statement coming directly from him. But it also does not sound as if he is reading it with a gun pointed to his head. Making Shalit compare his plight to that of Palestinian security prisoners was an appeal not only to the Israeli public but also to the Palestinian and Arab publics listening to the tape with translation.

Shalit Deal

Cpl. Gilad Shalit

There has been quite a bit of speculation recently about the prospects of a deal that would see the release of Corporal Gilad Shalit, who has been held by Palestinian militants since he was captured in a June 25, 2006 cross-border raid. On Friday, Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas claimed that the Israeli soldier would soon be returned. He cited progress in talks between the Israelis, Egyptian mediators, and the Palestinians. Apparently, the sides agree on the numbers of Palestinian security prisoners who would be exchanged for Shalit.

There may very well be some grounds for hope. There are even discussions underway in the Knesset, which would allow the release of Palestinian prisoners "with blood on their hands." But I can't help noting that all this talks sounds rather familiar.

The Palestinians and the Egyptians have made many announcements about "breakthroughs" in negotiations. I remember when people were talking about a release before Yom Kippur, or before the end of Ramadan. Nothing happened.

A loyal reader of this blog asked me whether Abbas's announcement had anything to do with Nancy Pelosi's Damascus trip or with the release of the British sailors. It is true that Pelosi has shown some interest in the fate of Shalit, as well as Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser, the reservists captured by Hizbullah, who may well be dead already (see this video of her in Jerusalem). Apparently, she keeps pictures of the three captives in her office. I happen to like Pelosi, but I think that her visit was farcical at best. With regard to Shalit in particular, Syria's President Bashar al-Assad is completely worthless. The fact is that none of the Palestinian leaders - not Abbas, not Dahlan, not Meshal, and definitely not Haniyah - are really in control of the people who are holding Shalit in Gaza right now.

Those holding the 19-year-old soldier are most likely members of the large Dagmoush clan, coverage of which has slowly seeped into the news over the past month. This powerful crime family was previously allied with Hamas, but it is clearly flexing its muscles and not willing to take orders from the political commanders. Its vendettas and its ruthlessness make the family a loose cannon that no one in Gaza is willing or able to control. The same group also appears to be holding BBC reporter Alan Johnston. The tactics they are using, especially the targeting of foreign journalist and UN personnel (an under-reported story) are more reminiscent of those employed by Iraqi terrorists than the Palestinians groups in Gaza over the past 5 years.

This complex background perhaps explains Abbas's comments to the effect that Shalit's release shouldn't be linked to that of the Palestinian prisoners, since "One thing does not depend on the other." Suffice to say, a deal for Shalit looks anything but imminent in light of this state of affairs. Indeed, the ability of the various Palestinian faction to enforce deals of any sort - always a liability in negotiations with them - is looking worse than ever.

Palestinian civilians are suffering daily from the anarchy in the Strip. In most of the fighting between Fatah and Hamas, the Islamic movement has come out on top. This has caused some to wonder whether it might not make more sense to rely on Hamas to deliver the goods. But the Shalit situation demonstrates that Hamas, too, is unable to control the forces unleashed by decades of glorifying armed struggle, a proliferation of weapons, widespread criminal activity supported by the political echelon, and years of occupation and attacks which undermined traditional leaders and norms. Add to that the penetration of al-Qaeda-type elements and fighters radicalized further in Iraq, and you have a mix that will plague the Palestinians for many decades to come.

Pray for the Release of the Soldiers

Cpl. Gilad Shalit

Egypt, which is the main mediator in the negotiations to free Gilad Shalit, is blaming Khaled Meshal of Hamas's Damascus bureau for blocking a deal that would have seen the release of the kidnapped Israeli soldier, who has been held by Palestinian militants since June 25, 2006. In a leaked letter, Omar Suleiman, the Egyptian intelligence chief, warned Meshal that he would be responsible for a major Israeli operation in Gaza if Shalit is not released by the end of Ramadan (October 23), Ha'aretz reported yesterday. Meanwhile, Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev, kidnapped by Hizbullah on July 12, remain in captivity.

If you believe that it might help, please pray for the safe return of Gilad ben Aviva, Ehud ben Malka, and Eldad ben Tova to their families, God-willing before Yom Kippur. Many people are saying תהילים קכא (Psalms 121):

א שִׁיר, לַמַּעֲלוֹת:

אֶשָּׂא עֵינַי, אֶל-הֶהָרִים-- מֵאַיִן, יָבֹא עֶזְרִי.

ב עֶזְרִי, מֵעִם יְהוָה-- עֹשֵׂה, שָׁמַיִם וָאָרֶץ.

ג אַל-יִתֵּן לַמּוֹט רַגְלֶךָ; אַל-יָנוּם, שֹׁמְרֶךָ.

ד הִנֵּה לֹא-יָנוּם, וְלֹא יִישָׁן-- שׁוֹמֵר, יִשְׂרָאֵל.

ה יְהוָה שֹׁמְרֶךָ; יְהוָה צִלְּךָ, עַל-יַד יְמִינֶךָ.

ו יוֹמָם, הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ לֹא-יַכֶּכָּה; וְיָרֵחַ בַּלָּיְלָה.

ז יְהוָה, יִשְׁמָרְךָ מִכָּל-רָע: יִשְׁמֹר, אֶת-נַפְשֶׁךָ.

ח יְהוָה, יִשְׁמָר-צֵאתְךָ וּבוֹאֶךָ-- מֵעַתָּה, וְעַד-עוֹלָם.

For all those who are observing on Monday, we wish you an easy fast and גמר חתימה טובה. And to our Muslim readers, Ramadan Mubarak.

Gaza Hostage Crisis

Kidnapped IDF soldier Cpl. Gil'ad Shalit
By now, most of our readers will have heard about the very well-coordinated attack carried out two days ago by members of at least three different Palestinian factions against Israeli army positions just east of the Gaza Strip. The attackers killed two Israeli soldiers and kidnapped a third. Here are some facts that I consider significant enough to highlight:

• The tunnel used by the attackers to get into Israeli territory and surprise the soldiers from the rear was 1 km in length and took about 2 months to dig
  
• Hamas is not "one organization with a single leadership, making decisions collectively" as Ghazi Hamad, spokesman for the Hamas government in Gaza, claimed in an interview with the New York Times on June 17, 2006
  
• The allegedly disciplined military wing of Hamas, "Kata'ib 'Izz al-Din al-Qassam", has splinter factions that oppose certain steps being taken by the political leadership of Hamas in the West Bank and Gaza
  
• The attack was probably launched without the knowledge of the political leadership of Hamas in the West Bank and Gaza, but with the full-hearted support of Khalid Mesh'al, the leader of the military wing of Hamas stationed in Damascus, Syria
  

For more detail on Hamas Prime Minister Isma'il Haniyye's complete lack of control vis-a-vis the Mesh'al-controlled military wing of his own movement, see:

Amos Harel and Avi Issacharoff, "Clock is ticking down," 27/06/2006

the original Hebrew version of the above article


For those who haven't read it yet and are wondering how this assault was executed, here's an excerpt from another article by Ha'aretz military commentator (and Hip Hop critic) Amos Har'el:

The tunnel was apparently very deep and almost a kilometer long, emerging into Israel about 300 meters east of border fence, just north of Kerem Shalom. Despite the army's numerous lookout posts in this area, no soldiers noticed the Palestinians emerging from the tunnel.

After they emerged, the Palestinians split into three groups that attacked the outpost almost simultaneously. The southern strike force, consisting of two Palestinians, attacked the outpost's "pillbox" and even tried to scale it with a ladder, sparking a fire fight in which both assailants were killed. Three soldiers were wounded during this fight, one moderately and two lightly.

The second strike force wasted most of its ammunition, which included a rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) and hand grenades, on an empty armored personnel carrier that had been stationed near the outpost as a decoy.

However, the northern strike force scored a major success: Under cover of a line of trees, it was able to approach a tank located about 600 meters north of the pillbox undetected and attack it with an RPG and hand grenades. The attack killed two of the four-member crew [...]

After the attack, the six assailants left alive returned to Gaza overland, rather than via the tunnel, using either a small bomb or an antitank missile to blow a hole in the border fence. According to army sources, the entire incident lasted about 10 minutes.