Religion Blog: Welcome home, my brother

For 1,941 days, or roughly five years and four months, many, including myself, longed for this opportunity that almost seemed as  though it would never come. Almost.

A 19-year-old Israeli soldier named Gilad Shalit was kidnapped by Hamas on my 13th birthday. Ever since, I felt a special connection to this certain soldier, who I’d never even met.

Although many are currently rejoicing in honour of Shalit’s freedom, other kidnapped Israeli soldiers have suffered less fortunate fates in the past. For around two years, Shalit’s name was always mentioned alongside that of Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev.

These two Israel Defense Forces soldiers were captured, having already been murdered by Hezbollah (which like Hamas, is an internationally recognized terrorist organization) just over two weeks after Hamas seized Shalit.

The campaign to return these three innocent men to Israel could be felt by many Jews across the world. After listening to the stories told by their closest family members, I felt it was impossible not to care.

Ehud and Eldad were returned, in coffins, to Israel in July 2008, in exchange for 200 deceased bodies of convicted criminals and five living ones. I commended former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert for not only showing leadership in making the trade, but for fulfilling a huge biblical commandment of returning missing Jews, dead or alive, to their loved ones.

But many were against such a prisoner swap. If 200 deceased bodies and five live terrorists were the combined price of two dead Israeli soldiers, how much would it cost to release Shalit, if he was even alive?

Also, what if the released convicts reoffend? Is it fair to the bereaved families to see the sentences of these criminals cut short? What if Hamas and Hezbollah now try to abduct more Israelis because they know that Israel will trade anything for them?

I’ve always felt that there’s an emotional level to the debate that supersedes these points, despite the fact that they’re well-put, legitimate arguments.

For instance, put yourself in the shoes of Shalit’s parents, Noam and Aviva Shalit, or his siblings, Yoel and Hadas. Put yourself in Shalit’s position, in an unknown Hamas jail without any connection to his family, under what has been speculated to be torturous conditions.

In Israel, army service is mandatory upon reaching the age of 18, barring any unique circumstances.

Shalit was doing what all of his fellow countrymen are required to do. He never did anything wrong. According to international law, he was illegally captured, illegally denied access to the Red Cross and illegally imprisoned for nearly five and a half years. To even consider the possibility of letting him die in captivity would have been wrong.

Despite this, many believed, and vocally speculated that Shalit had been killed long ago.

“Why would a terrorist organization keep him alive?” people would ask.

I’m not entirely sure of the answer myself, but I do know he was alive in September 2009, when Israel finally received a sign of life from him in the form of a video.

This video had been a necessary factor if Israel was to complete the trade for Shalit, as ordered by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. It showed Shalit reading a newspaper published the same day the video was shot, walking around to show his physical capabilities, and asking Israel to continue working towards his release.

Shalit even smiled in front of the camera upon identifying himself as the son of Noam and Aviva, and the brother of Yoel and Hadas.

This video was more than just proof that Gilad was alive. It was proof that no matter what he was going through, and no matter how unlikely it was that he would ever see the light of day again, that it was important to continue hoping.

Hamas made sure to release videos aimed at squashing these hopes as well. In April 2010, they posted an animated video which showed Gilad’s father, Noam, having a nightmare that his son was released, but in a coffin.

A few months later, another animation was released, which showed Gilad sitting in a chair with two gunmen beside him, followed by a dark screen, accompanied by the sound of gunshots.

When dealing with an organization that would use these tactics of psychological warfare, and also calls for genocide of the Jewish people entirely in its charter, there’s no doubt that Netanyahu faced an incredibly tough decision.

But ultimately, by making such a lopsided deal, Israel showed the world how much it truly values one life, which is something that will never be said about Hamas.

As Shalit saluted Netanyahu after descending from the helicopter that carried him back to Israel, when he approached the arms of his father for their first hug in over five years and as he smiled while walking around his childhood neighbourhood with his mother the next day, there was no feeling like it. Welcome home, my brother.

Thank you to Aviva, Noam, Yoel, Hadas and Shalit for staying so strong throughout these horrible years, and for inspiring me to believe that Shalit’s return was even still possible.

Thank God.