Deal Delayed Due to Refusal to Allow Terrorists into West Bank

June 28, 2010

by: Roni Sofer

While Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s associates said Saturday evening [June 26] that the protest march aimed at pressuring the government to work to release Shalit was a legitimate move, the security establishment presented the following data to the forum of seven senior ministers:

In March 2009, after the Olmert government and Hamas were at odds over 125 names on the list of Palestinian prisoners the Islamist group demanded in exchange for Shalit, Hamas submitted an alternative list.

In December 2009 Netanyahu’s government agreed to release more than 100 prisoners from the new list, despite the fact that they were involved in the murder of 800 Israelis. According to Israel, Hamas has yet to reply to the offer. The dispute revolves largely around Hamas’ demand that the prisoners be allowed to return to the West Bank. The security establishment has determined that their return to the region would jeopardize Israel’s security.

According to the data, 38% of the Fatah members who were released in the framework of the Jibril Agreement resumed their terror-related activity in the West Bank, as did 63% of Hamas terrorists and 67% of Islamic Jihad gunmen who were included in the deal.

It was further revealed that over the past six years Palestinians who were released as part of the deal for Elhanan Tannenbaum have been involved in terror attacks that have killed 27 Israelis, including the suicide bombing at Tel Aviv’s Stage Club in 2005 and the terror attack in Netanya’s Sharon Mall, also in 2005.

The Netanyahu government has determined that it would not release terrorists who were involved in the murder of more than 10 Israelis or terrorists who were involved in a number of specific terror attacks, including the Dolphinarium discotheque suicide bombing in Tel Aviv and the bombings in Jerusalem’s Sbarro pizzeria, Cafe Hillel and Cafe Moment.

“Israel is not willing to free these people,” Netanyahu said during a meeting of the forum of seven ministers. Israel has also informed the German mediator it would not release Ahmed Saadat, who was involved in the assassination of Minister Rehavam Ze’evi in 2001, or Marwan Barghouti, the former Tanzim leader who was convicted of involvement in five terror attacks.The German mediator relayed Israel’s conditions to Hamas, but has yet to receive an answer.

Posted on June 28, 2010

Source: Ynetnews, June 27, 2010