Leading rabbinic scholars are set to gather Tuesday evening to discuss the Jewish law and ethics of freeing jailed terrorists in exchange for the release of hostages. The gathering, which will be open to the public, is part of an evening to be held in memory of the highly respected former Israeli Chief Ashkenazi Rabbi Shlomo Goren. Two years after Rabbi Goren stepped down from his post in 1983, the Israeli government, led by then-Prime Minister Shimon Peres, concluded what became known as "the Jibril Deal". In 1985, Israel agreed to release 1,150 terrorist prisoners from its jails in exchange for Hezi Shai, Yosef Grof and Nissim Salem, Israeli soldiers held by Ahmed Jibril's PFLP-GC terror group since the 1982 Peace for Galilee War in Lebanon. The government allowed many of the ex-prisoners to return to territories controlled by Israel. Among those released was Japanese terrorist Kozo Okamoto, who perpetrated the Ben-Gurion Airport Massacre in May 1972. In response to a question regarding the position of Jewish law on the exchange, Rabbi Goren wrote a sharp response to then-Defense Minister Yitzchak Rabin criticizing the pending decision. At this evening's rabbinical gathering, Rabbi Chaim Druckman, head of the yeshiva network of Bnei Akiva, will present Rabbi Goren's position on the issue. Rabbi Yaakov Shapira, head of the flagship Merkaz HaRav Yeshiva, will analyze the Halachic (Jewish law) aspects of ransoming captives, while Major-General (res.) Yaakov Amidror will discuss the security angle. Rabbi She'ar-Yashuv Cohen, Chief Rabbi of Haifa, will add a personal perspective. The rabbi, who fought with the Irgun Tzvai Leumi (Etzel) in Jerusalem during Israel's War of Independence, was severely wounded and taken captive by the Arab Legion. He was held in a prison in Amman, Jordan, until the official end of the war. The gathering in memory of Rabbi Goren, slated for 7:30 p.m. in Jerusalem's Great Synagogue, will be attended by students of the rabbi, bereaved families of terror victims and activists involved in the issue of redemption of captives, as well as many students and youth movement members. The event is sponsored by Merkaz HaRav Yeshiva, Bnei Akiva yeshivas, the National Organization of Hesder Yeshivas and the Great Synagogue's management association. On Wednesday at 3:00 p.m., the public is invited to pay their respects at Rabbi Goren's grave on the Mount of Olives overlooking Jerusalem's Old City.
