GILAD SHALIT TO BE RELEASED AFTER FIVE YEARS!

GILAD SHALIT TO BE RELEASED AFTER FIVE YEARS!

Shalom Friends and Chag Sukkot Sameach (Happy Feast of Tabernacles),

You may recall that some time back we wrote to you about Gilad Shalit, the IDF soldier, who was kidnapped and held prisoner by Hamas.  During five years of captivity, Gilad was allowed no visitors; no one knew his whereabouts. His family knew nothing about his treatment, nor did the International Red Cross see him.

Thanks to your gifts, prayers and participation, we were able to make a nice donation to the Jerusalem Institute for Justice (JIJ), as it worked to make Gilad's condition known.  Also, many of you signed a petition which I forwarded to the International Committee of the Red Cross in their office in Geneva, Switzerland, earlier this year. It urged them to do what it would have done for any other prisoner, by looking in on his situation.

Israel and Hamas have now agreed to swap Gilad for 1,000 imprisoned Palestinians.  While Israel struggles over releasing such large numbers of known terrorists, time and again Israel has demonstrated how precious it considers every single person.  As the Talmud reminds us, when you save one life, it is as if you have saved the world.

Again, I thank you for standing with the IMJA and Gilad Shalit, as he is returned to the loving arms of his family.

Joel Liberman, Executive Director, International Messianic Jewish Alliance