As Israel weighs the merits of an emerging hostage and ceasefire deal, one security expert warned that the agreement has too many parallels with another hostage deal that led to the October 7 attacks.
“Ultimately, the deal is about security. No matter how you spin it, the effects are inherently tied to Israel’s security,” Col. (Res.) Hezi Nechama told The Press Service of Israel. Nechama, a former brigade commander, is one of the founders of the Forum of Reservist Commanders and Fighters.
“By the next morning after the deal, Hamas will begin to recover and rearm faster than we might think. We’ll soon return to a scenario where Hamas operates as a powerful, armed organization,” he told TPS-IL.
Nechama drew parallels to the Gilad Shalit deal of 2011, when Israel freed 1,027 security prisoners for Shalit. Many of the terrorists involved in planning Hamas’s October 7 attack, including its mastermind, Yahya Sinwar were among those released in that swap.