(Government Press Office)
Yediot Aharonot says that "The demand to increase the number of terrorists [for release] comes because of the Government's weakness. The time has come to say in a strong voice: The terrorist organizations only understand a strong hand. We have already learned that when we toughened the embargo, they were the ones who begged for the tahdiye. That is the language they understand. Why aren’t the crossings closed? Why is Hamas continuing to be supplied with fuel, food and medicines, which it seems, do not reach the people, but rather Hamas leaders, who use them for their own needs?"
Yisrael Hayom asserts that the criteria for the release of Palestinian terrorists are worthless. "They do not exist anyway. The Government does as it pleases. It wants a hard line, it wants to erase. Not all at once. It is a continuous, exhaustive process. As long as the present Government runs the country - they [criteria] are superfluous. Useless".
Ma'ariv maintains that "History is repeating itself: At end of last week, on the very day that Abie Nathan, the man who was arrested in February 1966 immediately upon his return on his flight for peace to Egypt, passed away, the police arrested Prof. Jack Halper upon his return from Gaza, to which he sailed from Cyprus". The editors quote Prof. Halper: "As someone who personally experienced the Kassam rocket barrages I cannot ignore the Palestinian violence, but we seldom report on those on the other side who are hurt by the conflict".
Haaretz claims that the government has failed in the negotiations for gaining Gilad Shalit's release, and that not only has Israel caused itself to be in an inferior position in the negotiations for his release, its position is weakening the more time passes. The editor places the moral burden on Ehud Olmert and his cabinet, and questions whether Israel is willing to pay the price in terms of releasing murderers, or if it is willing to accept the murder of a prisoner knowing that it could have gained his release.
The Jerusalem Post discusses the alleged murder of little Rose Pizem, and claims that despite the breast-beating over Rose, no amount of sanctimonious posturing can blame the Israeli collective for one family's acute deformities. Israel is a self-critical society, concluded the editor, but this time we need to cut ourselves some slack.
[Mickey Goldwasser, Dan Margalit and Ofer Shinar wrote today’s articles in Yediot Aharonot, Yisrael Hayom and Ma'ariv, respectively.]