The concept of trading convicted murderers for..well, for anything… is an Israeli innovation.
Israel routinely trades convicted terrorists for Peace; terrorists for Talks about Peace; and terrorists in return for Israeli hostages, alive and dead. Even for Ramadam – Israel routinely releases convicted terrorists.
In the current phase, Israel is trading three batches of convicted murderers for building permits in Judea and Samaria.
This is apparently some kind of good-will gesture to the Palestinians, to help negotiations along, either with or without the tacit approval of the USA.
The USA and Europe certainly go through the motions of strongly objecting (to the building, of course!).
Each time Israel releases terrorists, there are emotional & outraged appeals from the families of the victims of these murderers, demonstrations and protests from the Right Wing block, and redundant trips to the High Court – which has never, to my knowledge, over-ruled these clear violations of Justice and of the Justice System.
From the Palestinian side, obtaining the release of terrorists is hugely popular. Indeed, the more disgusting the acts of the terrorists, the more heroic and honourable they are to the Palestinian Authority and the populous.
The Palestinians apparently go along with the latest deal – Palestinian murderers exchanged for Israeli building permits.
This peculiar Israeli logic also works in reverse.
After acts of terrorism, “settlers” routinely will establish a new neighborhood or outpost, in memory of the victims, and as “the Zionist Response to terror”.
The moral equivalence, accepted by all parties, of Murder to Building is astonishing.
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