Brother of Ramallah lynch victim: Barak lied to me

"The government lied to all the bereaved families. They promised the bereaved parents that the terrorists would never get out. Ehud Barak made a personal promise to me that this terrorist would never see the light of day. I knew that day that he had lied to me. I told everyone that it was only a matter of time before the next deal. I saw the Goldwasser and Regev deal and I knew that it was only a matter of time before the murderers of my brother (are released)."

The painful monologue above belongs to Michael Norzich, brother of Vadim, who was murdered by a mob in Ramallah in the year 2000. Michael said that no one called to tell him that one of the murderers of his brother is included in the list of 477 prisoners who will be released as part of the first phase of the Gilad Shalit prisoner exchange deal.

Abed Alaziz Salaha, who was photographed in the horrific photo with his hands covered with blood in what has become the symbol of the second intifada, was sentenced to life in prison but is expected to be released on Tuesday.

Abed Alaziz Salaha waves his blood-covered hands after Ramallah lynch (Photo: Imagebank/AFP)

"The pain is stronger today," Michael told Ynet. "Not because of the deal itself but because of the way it is carried out. It is not a deal but a major loss. It is a twisted deal. You don't release at any cost. There is a price. You cannot give it all."

• For extensive coverage of the Shalit deal, click here
  

On the one hand, the bereaved brother says, the family is happy for the parents and siblings who will see their son Gilad Shalit come home. "On the other hand, our family is angry that nobody cared about our sensitivity. No one (in the government) experienced our pain," he said.

Latest stories on Shalit deal:

• More bereaved families fight Shalit deal
• List of Shalit deal prisoners released
• Shalit deal: Prisoners begin transfer process
• Op-ed: Victims murdered again
  

Michael does not feel any pity for the families of the Palestinian prisoners. "They are all the devil's children. I don’t feel sorry for them and not for the tears of their mothers. A mother that sends her child to blow up?!"

Meanwhile, Simo Avrahami will once again surround himself in mourning. Over a decade after his son Yossi was brutally murdered in Ramallah together with Vadim Norzich, he received the news that the infamous murderer will be included in the prisoner swap deal.

I intend to sit Shiva for Yossi for a second time," he told Ynet, "like thousands of other bereaved families." Avrahami was also forced to hear the news of the terrorist's release from the media.

"I have nothing against the Shalit family, they acted as expected of any family whose son has been kidnapped but I did expect more from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak, they should have exhibited some consideration and not have cheated thousands of bereaved families."

The Ramallah lynch took place on October 12, 2000, when a mob of Palestinians murdered two IDF soldiers, Vadim Norzich and Yossi Avrahami, and mutilated their bodies.

The lynch occurred at the start of the al-Aqsa Intifada and despite attempts by the Palestinian Authority to erase any documentation of the brutal murder, the horrific images reached every corner of the world and sent shockwaves in Israel.

Salaha, 30, from the village of Dir Jarid near Ramallah, was arrested in 2001 and admitted that he was part of the mob that stormed the police station, and that he strangled one of the soldiers while the others beat him.

When he saw that his hands were covered with the soldiers' blood, he went to the window to proudly show his hands to the mob below.

• Follow Ynetnews on Facebook
  

• Receive Ynetnews updates directly to your desktop