I feel someone should state the obvious

The Palestinians are calling for “an exchange of prisoners”. This statement is a distortion of reality. Israel holds prisoners, people who have participated in acts of terror, helped such acts or planned them. This includes murderers but also logistic supporters. Israel does not hold political prisoners or simple civilians against which there is no evidence. That is the definition of holding a prisoner. Israel does not however hold prisoner of war – such prisoners would have had to be captured during a declared war between two states. The PA – if it were a state – would have had to acknowledge that the people Israel is holding were its soldiers who were acting under direct orders from the PA leadership. This would shift the status of Abu-Mazen, Arafat, Dahalan, Hania, and the rest of the bunch from a so called “political branch”/”political leaders” etc to a full blown “War criminals”. Consider the fact that even the “Arab prostitute” UN chief Anan acknowledged that homicide bombing are war crimes. But that would not be were it ends, no one in history released war criminals in any prison exchange. Therefore, if the Palestinians in Israeli jails were prisoners of war they and the Palestinian leadership would be war criminals. As of now – they are terrorists serving their time.

But what about the Israelis held by Palestinians? Are they prisoners? If they were – then where is the jail? On what grounds were they held? Did any of them commit any crime by any law? Of course not! Innocent civilians abducted in broad day light from their neighborhood street are not prisoners – they are abductees held by terrorists. The soldier for that matter – is still not a prisoner of war, if he were then what is said in the first paragraph would again apply to the leadership and lower level terrorists. If he were a prisoner of war, then the PA would have to abide by the Geneva Convention and allow the Red Cross to visit him.

It is all too obvious but has to be said. I can imagine that some air heads in the west actually think there is equality between abducted Israeli civilians and terrorists sitting in Israeli jail.