The words are important. All armies are familiar with exchanges of prisoners of war. Generally, this happens after the end of hostilities, sometimes while the war is still going on. The army releases the enemy fighters in return for the release of its own captured soldiers.
This does not apply to abducted persons. When criminals abduct a person and hold them for ransom, the question arises whether the price should be paid. Payment may encourage more abductions and reward the criminals.
The moment Gilad was defined as "abducted, he was condemned to what followed. He also lost his honor as a soldier. A soldier is not "abducted. The millions of soldiers captured during World War II " Germans, Russians, Britons, Americans and all the others " would have felt insulted by any suggestion that they were "abducted.
THE GREATEST danger hovering over the head of Gilad since falling into captivity does not come from Hamas, but from our own army.
It was clear that, given an opportunity, the army would try to free him by force. That is deeply embedded in its basic ethos: Never give in to "abductors.
If I were Gilad's father and a praying man, I would pray every day: Please, dear God, don't let the army find out where Gilad is being kept!
Our army commanders are prepared to expose prisoners to immense risks in order to free them by force, instead of exchanging them for Palestinian prisoners. For them it is a matter of honor.
In such an operation, the lives of the liberators are put at risk. But above all, it's the life of the prisoner that is endangered.
One of the most celebrated operations in the annals of the Israeli Army took place in Entebbe in July, 1976. It freed the 98 passengers of a hijacked Air France plane, which had been forced to land at Entebbe airport in Uganda. The operation elicited worldwide admiration. Only one of the liberators lost his life " the brother of Binyamin Netanyahu. (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
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