Naftali’s mother spoke on a radio broadcast directly to her son:
“Naftali, Mom and Dad and your brothers love you to no end,” she said. “You should know that the people of Israel are turning worlds to bring you home.”
Over 30,000 “gathered at the Western Wall plaza on Sunday” to attend a prayer session for the release of the boys.
Ban Ki-moon declared that he “expresses his solidarity with the families of the abducted and calls for their immediate release.” But then continues to say that he
“expresses his deep concern about the trend toward violence on the ground and attendant loss of life, including today of a child in Gaza as a result of a recent Israeli airstrike. He expresses his condolences to the bereaved family.”
Ban Ki-moon failed to mention that the boy happened to be with his uncle, a Palestinian militant.
The Israeli airstrike was in response to a rocket launched from Gaza. The Israeli response to being attacked was to fire back.
The boy who was killed was riding on the back of a motorcycle belonging to his uncle, Mohammed al-Woor, who “belonged to a pro-al Qaeda Salafi group” and also died in the attack.
In the UK, Foreign Secretary William Hague also released a statement condemning the kidnapping. He said in part,
“The rockets fired indiscriminately from Gaza into Israel must stop; it is tragic that the Israeli airstrikes in response led to civilian injuries and the death of a child.”
Secretary of State John Kerry also chimed in, condemning the kidnapping and pointing (weakly) to Hamas. He said in part,
“We are still seeking details on the parties responsible for this despicable terrorist act, although many indications point to Hamas’ involvement.”
As reported at the New York Times, Benjamin Netanyahu “squarely blamed the militant Palestinian movement Hamas” and further criticized the United States and Europe for supporting President Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority in the “formation of a new government this month after reconciling with the Islamist Hamas.”
As reported at the NYT, he said,
“You remember that Israel warned the international community about the dangers of endorsing the Fatah-Hamas unity pact,” Mr. Netanyahu said Sunday, referring to Mr. Abbas’s secular Fatah faction. “The dangers of that pact now should be abundantly clear to all.” He said that there had been an increase in “terrorist activity emanating from the West Bank” since the April reconciliation, and that “this increases the likelihood that Hamas will take control of the Palestinian Authority.”
“This will not advance peace; it will advance terror,” he added.
As reported by Howard Portnoy at Liberty Unyielding, some Palestinians were not exactly sympathetic to the plight of the Israeli teens. Indeed, they gave out candy and celebrated the abductions.
While children in the Palestinian authority continue to be taught to hate Jewish people, whether through textbooks or children’s programs; while the United Nations, politicians and radical professors and their adoring useful idiots continue to look the other way while rockets are relentlessly launched into Israel as they call for boycotting Israel, expect no changes.
