Gilad Shalit release: live

Telegraph ^

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Gilad Shalit, the Israel soldier held captive for five years by Hamas, has been freed today in Gaza in return for the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.

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watching EuroNews on tv, they showed video of him being released in Egypt.
Said Netanyahu was with his parents, and that he spoke with them.

[R. Scott]

One Israeli soldier is worth 477 Palestinian terrorists!

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The Telegraph’s Richard Spencer reports from Israel on Gilad Shalit’s touchdown to the Tel Nof Air Base where he will meet his family:

Shalit is wearing the uniform of a Sergeant First Class, the rank to which he was promoted in honour of his release. Apparently three sets of uniform were taken to the point where he entered Israel as no-one was sure what size he would be after three years in captivity.

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12:03 Mark Weiss reports from Jerusalem that the Israeli army has announced that the release of 477 Palestinian prisoners has been sucessfully completed. The second release of 550 detainees will take place within a couple of months.

[R. Scott]

Wow. That’s even more astounding.

[cripplecreek]

He’s very thin.

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[nuconvert]

Yes, he is. Though his family said (and old photos show) that he was always thin. He does look thinner than his old photos.
His mom will fatten him up.

[cameraeye]

“One Israeli soldier is worth 477 Palestinian terrorists!”

We’ve always said they’re one in a million! n/s

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12:01 Speaking to a large crowd in Ramallah, Mahmoud Abbas, Palestinian president said:

Dear brother and sisters, your families in Palestinian territories and around the world are looking at you now and are happy that you are being released.

Your efforts have not been in vain. You have sacrificed, fought and paid the price. You will see the results of your struggle by the inception of a free and independent Palestinian state whose capital is Jerusalem.

[liberateUS]

History will prove this to be an incredibly poor decision. Many more innocent Israelis will die by the hands of those they released.

[redgolum]

Bad precedent. This is going to encourage more kidnappings.

[Stepan12]

The brilliant Dan Greenfield calls this Israel's greatest military defeat: Revolving Door Terrorism.

A Pinochet type government is needed in Israel and, perhaps, the U.S. as well.

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“12:01 Speaking to a large crowd in Ramallah, Mahmoud Abbas, Palestinian president said:

Bringing back captured soldiers is a top priority but I set two cardinal demands during the negotiations: that Hamas leaders stay in jail and that senior militants be deported to Gaza or abroad. These demands were met.”

So they can plan terrorist acts from abroad now.

No doubt they’ll be back home after the attention is gone.

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Not a “precedent.”
These types of ridiculously lopsided prisoner exchanges between Israel and Palestinians have been going on for many yrs

[Cheburashka]

One Israeli soldier is worth 477 Palestinian terrorists!

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As I said on another thread, the Israelis are saying that they will release hundreds of murderers who will perform more murders of Israelis in the future in exchange for the release of one Israeli. The Palestinians see weakness on the part of the Israelis, are taking advantage of said Israeli weakness, and celebrating it. As the Palestinians see it, if your enemy is willing to do something monumentally stupid, why would you not take advantage of it?

Of course the Palestinians will happily go with the concept that one Israeli is worth one thousand Palestinians, that will maximize the effect of taking one Israeli hostage. And the hunt for the next Israeli hostages will begin as soon as Shalit is released.

[Truth29]

And when these terrorists return to kill and kidnap more Israelis, what will Netanyahu say? For that matter, what does he say to the families of the dead that were killed by the released terrorists? This is a horrible deal and a great defeat for Israel.

[Pan_Yans Wife]

Continued prayers for Shalit and his family. So much healing... physical, mental and emotional must take place. I’m simply amazed that he’s still alive.

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photos at link of Shalit being greeted by his father & Netanyahu at Tel Nof air base