Bennett is looking for an alibi
The chest pains we feel these days are going to resurface and dominate the public over the next six months. Releasing terrorists is painful. It triggers feelings of helplessness, especially when we learn the identities of the killers and what they did to innocent Jews.
From the outset, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu could have saved himself three stages of grief, had he agreed to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas' demand to release all 104 murderous terrorists at once.
On the other hand, the decision was made after a period of ongoing hostility. Perhaps Netanyahu feared that the PA chairman would fail to stand behind statements to help eradicate terror. Or maybe he felt Abbas could not resist petitioning the United Nations to recognize a Palestinian state. So Netanyahu decided to lay the key in his hand. Four stages, four unlocked bolts.
Clearly, releasing murderous prisoners who committed their crimes against a nationalistic background is a mistake (even if the prisoners were Jews). Still, the right-wing in the government preferred prisoner releases to halting construction in Judea and Samaria, also a mistake. Even Habayit Hayehudi Chairman Naftali Bennett can see that.
The thing is, the prisoner release has become a fact. Not being a pirate nation, Israel has to meet its commitments. Even Israel Beytenu understands that Abbas kept his promise not to set out again on the path of terror. There's no reason to let us know that the possibility exists to allow a ratified agreement to crumble. When ministers from Habayit Hayehudi and Israel Beytenu, as well as their cohorts and deputies in Likud, ask for fresh deliberations to reconsider the decision, they are making alibis in their respective parties. Maybe they are also trying to alleviate their consciences, which didn't bother to chime in when the first decision was made, but also won't completely vacate the conference room either.
The heated debate is worthy of a screenplay. It's worth considering the following possibility: The U.S. needs to focus on putting an end to the Iranian nuclear initiative (a need that is dependant on Sunni Arab states). So Washington decides it is willing to freeze Israeli-Palestinian negotiations for two years. Jerusalem responds agreeably, but the Palestinian Authority demurs.
So, in order to placate the PA -- according to the diplomatic screenplay -- Israel is required to compensate the PA for the diplomatic, two-year freeze by releasing 104 murderers, perhaps even 208. Would Habayit Hayehudi MKs Naftali Bennett, Uri Ariel and Orit Struk agree to release security prisoners in exchange for the freedom to develop in the settlements and the prospect of defunct diplomatic negotiations? I have no doubt that the answer is yes.
What are another 100 elderly Palestinian murderers who have languished in prison for more than 20 years, when you're looking at silenced diplomatic activities and unprecedented development? To be clear, their goal is not the extension of their incarcerations. They want to stop the back-and-forth with the Palestinian Authority.
What the public sees now is a sort of indifference and irresponsibility to the point of enabling anarchy. You cannot attack the government from within it. You cannot rise up against the government without being willing to leave and never come back. Netanyahu's brinksmanship is necessary, because whoever attacks the government after accepting its decisions should have to do so from the outside.
טעינו? נתקן! אם מצאתם טעות בכתבה, נשמח שתשתפו אותנו