Gilad shalit and members of his unit at YU

Gilad Shalit and members of his IDF unit received a standing ovation at Yeshiva University (YU) on Oct. 16 – two days before the first anniversary of his release after more than five-years in captivity at the hands of Hamas. Thousands of students and members of the YU community came to hear Shalit and members of his unit share their experiences.
Meanwhile, on Oct. 18 — the anniversary of Shalit’s release — Hamas’s leadership spoke openly about capturing more Israeli soldiers in order to use them as bargaining chips for the release of Palestinian prisoners, according to JNS. Shalit was released in exchange for 1,027 Palestinian prisoners, many of whom were convicted terrorists. “It should serve as a road map to free Palestinian prisoners in the future,” Hamas’ leader Ismail Haniyeh said at an event marking the anniversary. Earlier in the day Hamas spokesman Abu Obeida said, “The enemy soldiers can at any moment be killed, or captured, or made disabled, regardless of the weapons they have, because they are facing the soldiers of God.