This letter first appearing in Maan News, is reportedly a letter from Noam Shalit, to the Head of Hamas Khaled Mashal, urging him to accept a prisoner swap. According to Maan, the letter was written in Arabic and delivered to Meshal in Syria. It's shocking how Noam ends the letter with a blessing for the terrorist Meshal, "God is the source of strength, may the peace and mercy of God be upon you." Only a Jew can end a letter to the terrorist kidnapper of his son, who has put him through that much pain with a blessing. Below is the text of the letter copied from Maan News.
Dear Mr Khaled Mash'al
Head of the Hamas movement politburo
Damascus, Syrian Arab Republic
May God's peace and mercy be upon you,
On the occasion of Palestinian Prisoners Day, 17 April 2010, and for the sake of hundreds or even thousands of Palestinian prisoners' families and Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, I address you, on behalf of myself and my family, as the leader of the Hamas movement and one of the leaders of the Palestinian people.
A few months ago, German mediator Mr J. Conrad, who was selected by the German government and Her Excellency Chancellor Angela Merkel, presented a proposal for a prisoner exchange that would put an end to the suffering of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians. This offer, approved by the government of Israel, would see the release of 1,000 Palestinian prisoners, including 450 prisoners demanded by Hamas' leadership, released in exchange for my son, Gilad Shalit.
Additionally, it is clear to everyone that implementing the deal will lift restrictions imposed on the population of the Gaza Strip, and ease the suffering that they have been subjected to in the years since my son Gilad was captured some four years ago.
It should be noted that shutting the door to the release of 1,000 Palestinian prisoners within this generous deal arranged by the German mediator, in joint cooperation with the Israeli and Hamas-led Palestinian negotiating staff, would amount to an additional punishment for the prisoners and their families, rather than releasing them, considering that the first penalty was the sentence imposed by the Israeli judiciary.
I must remind you, Mr Mash'al, that the detention of Gilad as a bargaining chip, without human rights, and as a prisoner of war as stipulated by the Third Geneva Convention, is a flagrant violation of international law.
I should also note that the Goldstone commission, which you recognized and whose work you encouraged, unequivocally stated the need to release Gilad, or until that time he be afforded his human rights in full. Within this context, the European parliament, in its its session on 11 March 2010, unprecedentedly affirmed the necessity of releasing Gilad and giving him rights afforded under international conventions. I pray that you do not ignore the decision of the European parliament, which represents half a billion Europeans.
Based on the aforementioned, I appeal to you today, on the eve of Palestinian Prisoners Day, to rise above the political considerations of the Hamas movement for the good of the Palestinian prisoners, and in the interests of Palestinians in general, and demonstrate leadership by calling for consensus among Hamas' leaders to approve the German mediator's proposal.
God is the source of strength,
May the peace and mercy of God be upon you,
Noam Shalit
On behalf of the Shalit family
Damascus, Syrian Arab Republic
May God's peace and mercy be upon you,
On the occasion of Palestinian Prisoners Day, 17 April 2010, and for the sake of hundreds or even thousands of Palestinian prisoners' families and Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, I address you, on behalf of myself and my family, as the leader of the Hamas movement and one of the leaders of the Palestinian people.
A few months ago, German mediator Mr J. Conrad, who was selected by the German government and Her Excellency Chancellor Angela Merkel, presented a proposal for a prisoner exchange that would put an end to the suffering of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians. This offer, approved by the government of Israel, would see the release of 1,000 Palestinian prisoners, including 450 prisoners demanded by Hamas' leadership, released in exchange for my son, Gilad Shalit.
Additionally, it is clear to everyone that implementing the deal will lift restrictions imposed on the population of the Gaza Strip, and ease the suffering that they have been subjected to in the years since my son Gilad was captured some four years ago.
It should be noted that shutting the door to the release of 1,000 Palestinian prisoners within this generous deal arranged by the German mediator, in joint cooperation with the Israeli and Hamas-led Palestinian negotiating staff, would amount to an additional punishment for the prisoners and their families, rather than releasing them, considering that the first penalty was the sentence imposed by the Israeli judiciary.
I must remind you, Mr Mash'al, that the detention of Gilad as a bargaining chip, without human rights, and as a prisoner of war as stipulated by the Third Geneva Convention, is a flagrant violation of international law.
I should also note that the Goldstone commission, which you recognized and whose work you encouraged, unequivocally stated the need to release Gilad, or until that time he be afforded his human rights in full. Within this context, the European parliament, in its its session on 11 March 2010, unprecedentedly affirmed the necessity of releasing Gilad and giving him rights afforded under international conventions. I pray that you do not ignore the decision of the European parliament, which represents half a billion Europeans.
Based on the aforementioned, I appeal to you today, on the eve of Palestinian Prisoners Day, to rise above the political considerations of the Hamas movement for the good of the Palestinian prisoners, and in the interests of Palestinians in general, and demonstrate leadership by calling for consensus among Hamas' leaders to approve the German mediator's proposal.
God is the source of strength,
May the peace and mercy of God be upon you,
Noam Shalit
On behalf of the Shalit family
No comments:
Post a Comment