[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 114 (Tuesday, July 17, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1547]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       FREE THE ISRAELI SOLDIERS

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                       HON. JANICE D. SCHAKOWSKY

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, July 12, 2007

  Ms. SCHAKOWSKY. Madam Speaker, I rise today to call for the immediate 
and unconditional release of Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser, Israeli 
soldiers held captive by Hezbollah for the past year. On July 12, 2006, 
Hezbollah terrorists crossed into Israel and attacked two Israel 
Defense Forces (IDF) armored jeeps as they were patrolling Israel's 
northern border. One year ago today, those terrorists killed three 
Israeli soldiers and kidnapped Eldad and Ehud, as mentioned above.
  We mourn the passing of the three Israeli soldiers who were killed a 
year ago, and to honor their legacies, we must continue in our work to 
secure the release of Eldan Regev and Ehud Goldwasser. As their 
families pray for their swift return, the United States must continue 
to forge ahead in our efforts to bring about their release.
  Madam Speaker, Hezbollah has tried to make Eldad and Ehud into 
bargaining chips. But they are not political chess pieces, things that 
can be swapped for political gain. They are human beings with names, 
lives, and families who miss them. They have families who wait every 
day for news of their circumstances, who have waited every day for a 
year now without receiving word that Eldad and Ehud are safe.
  Unfortunately, Eldad and Ehud are not alone among Israel's missing 
soldiers. Three weeks before their capture, Hamas kidnapped IDF 
soldier, Gilad Shalit. The Shalit family has met with many communities 
across the United States, urging people to remember their son and speak 
out on his behalf.
  To honor those who died a year ago, and the soldiers held captive, we 
must let the perpetrators of these terrible acts know that we have not 
forgotten what they have done. In March we passed H. Res. 107, calling 
for the immediate and unconditional release of Israeli soldiers held 
captive by Hamas and Hezbollah, and now we continue to express our 
deepest sympathies to the families of the missing soldiers, and we must 
pledge to continue the fight to bring them home.
  I join with those across Israel and the United States to call for the 
immediate and unconditional release of Eldad, Ehud and Gilad. As the 
leader of the democratic world, America stands with Israel in its 
refusal to let these soldiers be forgotten.

                          ____________________