The new head of Israel’s Shin Bet security agency warns that the release of terrorists en masse as part of hostage deals has incentivized kidnapping of Israelis, heightening the likelihood of future abductions
Israelis face an elevated threat of kidnapping by terrorist elements, an Israeli security chief warned recently, in part as a result of the mass release of jailed terrorists in exchange for the return of Israeli captives held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
Last Thursday, Shin Bet head Maj. Gen. (Res.) David Zini told the security cabinet that “the threat of kidnappings has not gone down” in recent months.
Instead, Zini added, the likelihood of abductions “has risen and will continue to rise, because there is a price for the way we paid for the release of the hostages.”
