Never, if we keep appeasing the terrorists.

A good friend of mine here in Israel has a daughter the same age as my youngest daughter.
The girl is a such a lovely person. She is sweet, relatively shy, and
very thoughtful. She just finished her service in the Israeli army and like
most young Israelis, she is traveling the world between army service and the
beginning of her university studies.

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The first stop is usually India. Some eventually end up in South America. My friend's
daughter went with a group of other young Israeli girls to India and Nepal.

My friend was ill. Due to her medication, she went to sleep without
hearing the news about the terrorist acts in Mumbai, India. The next morning
she was awakened by a call from a relative who informed her of the
events in India, and asked her about the safety of her daughter. At this point,
she did not know the location of her daughter nor had she heard from her since the siege of Mumbai began.

Would She Be Safe

She was further worried because she knew her daughter would be going to
Chabad houses throughout her trip.

As a mother of three, I can just imagine what thoughts were going through
her mind.

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I haven't known my friend's daughter for very long, but even I was
extremely worried and distressed about the safety of this very sweet
girl who I have had the pleasure of knowing at many Shabbat lunches and dinners.

Thank G-d she was traveling in a different part of India and did not fall victim to the terrorism.

The terrorists in Mumbai, among many of their other demands, wanted India
to release some prisoners. Here in Israel it is the same story. There are
constant demands for the release of thousands of terrorist prisoners
who murdered innocent Israeli civilians, children, women and men
in suicide bombings, stabbings, shootings, and kidnappings.

A few months ago, the Israelis released hundreds of terrorists in exchange
for two dead bodies of Israelis.

A Prime Illustration of What I Mean

And, when Israel caves into these demands, the terrorists who are
released come back to murder more Israeli civilians. In fact, just this
week, a major terrorist attack during rush hour at the Central Bus Station in Tel Aviv
was averted because of the superior intelligence work of Israeli intelligence agents.

Two Fatah-aligned Palestinians — just released from Israeli prisons — helped
plan to bomb the Tel Aviv Central Bus Station.

Although Jewish facilities in the world are definite targets, as was the
Chabad House in India, it is obvious that these terrorists are indiscriminate
when it comes to the religion of their victims.

If you are American or British, no matter your religion, you are fair game. In
India they attacked hotels, hospitals, train stations and restaurants. Both
Italy and Spain have admitted that they have harbored terrorists in order
to protect their own citizens from threats of what just occurred in Mumbai.

Again, appeasement and isolationism is the modus operandi of the world
because no one has the guts or inclination to stop the terror.

What They Don’t Understand

People wonder why I moved to Israel.

Believe it or not I feel safer in Israel because here we have not become
complacent like the rest of the world. We must be alert at all times. While
the terror was winding down in Mumbai and Jews were in prayer on
Shabbat (the Sabbath), the Palestinians in Gaza were firing rockets into Israel.

These rockets never stopped even during the so-called "truce."

Yet, Israel is thought of as the aggressor.

My friends and relative won't visit me because they think Israel is a "war
zone." Wake up people. The entire world is a war zone!

L'hitraot. Shachar

Shachar is the Hebrew name of a California-based attorney and former Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputy who moved to Israel last year.