Fallen IDF soldier Hadar (L) and Tzur Goldin
Photo courtesy of the family
Tzur Goldin recounts Turkey reconciliation deal talk with PM
On backdrop of recent crisis in relations with Turkey, twin brother of fallen IDF soldier whose body is still held by Hamas in Gaza Hadar Goldin says Netanyahu told his family deal had nothing to do with Hamas or Gaza; Leah Goldin accused PM of frittering away all of their bargaining chips, as Tzur writes, 'It was the first time we understood we were alone.'
On the backdrop of a burgeoning diplomatic crisis
with Turkey, the twin brother of fallen IDF soldier whose body
is still held by Hamas in Gaza Hadar Goldin
published a Facebook post Wednesday that blasted Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
and his reconciliation agreement
with Turkey.
l Goldin wrote, "Today, when the prime minister accuses (Turkish President) Erdoğan of being Hamas's benefactor, ignores the reconciliation agreement he himself had signed, and blatantly disregards Hadar and Oron (Shaul, another soldier whose body is held by Hamas—ed), all I have to say is: how lucky.
Tzur Goldin's post included a recounting of a conversation the family had had with the premier some four years ago, mere days before Israel penned the reconciliation deal.
Fallen IDF soldier Hadar (L) and Tzur Goldin. Tzur published a Facebook post recounting a conversation his family had had with PM Netanyahu (Photo courtesy of the family)
"Lucky I decided to put our story in writing two years ago. You can just pluck out 'quality moments with the prime minister,'" Goldin mocked, adding that the family felt exceedingly hurt by the agreement signed at the time, which forewent any mention of the bodies of the Israeli soldiers held in Gaza.
"It was in the afternoon," he continued, "and the phone rang, showing an unlisted number. It was the government's military secretary. I put the call on speakerphone, with my mom on another line. On the other hand was the prime minister, with a handful of advisers in his office."
"The prime minister opened the conversation by explaining to my parents that an important agreement was to be signed in the next few days, and that no matter what they hear, it has nothing to do with bringing Hadar or Oron back. It has nothing to do with the Gaza Strip or Hamas," Goldin's brother noted.
Despite the Prime Minister Netanyahu's claims, the Goldin family still took an interest in the agreement. "It turned out," the post said, "that the essence of the deal was normalizing relations with Turkey, which cut off relations in Israel nine years ago after the Marmara attack."
"The agreement included the transfer of a gas line from Israel through Turkey, alongside a partial lifting of the naval blockade on Gaza, an agreement allowing the introduction of international trade to Gaza, the creation of water desalination facilities for the Gaza regime, the creation of a power station and an additional hospital and talks to create a sea and airport," Goldin elaborated.
Leah Goldin (L) with her son Tzur. She is said to have accused the PM of wasting all of the family's hard-earned bargaining chips (Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg)
Tzur continued, "My mother chimed in for the first time, and claimed that from his description, it sounded like an agreement with Gaza and not with Turkey. My mother asked the prime minister if we have been strung along this far only for Hadar and Oron to be forgotten, and now—two days before the deal is signed—it's being brought to our attention like a thief in the dark."
"She asked the prime minister whether he ever planned on releasing Hadar to begin with," he accused.
Goldin said that the military secretary then interjected to claim his parents didn't understand, and that it was an agreement with Turkey alone that had nothing to do with Hamas. It was also important to Israel's economy, Goldin claimed the secretary said.
"The prime minister then told my mom, 'Leah, could you have shouldered the burden of bringing back Hadar at the expense of a plague fouling all of Gaza's water, or famine in the strip? Could you have shouldered the burden of threats by countries that hate us and that will disparage us in the world?'" he remembered.
At that point of the call, Tzur Goldin said, his mother began to weep. His father answered the prime minister himself, saying, "You're upgrading the strip: a power station? A seaport? A desalination plant? Where did this agreement come from? Does the government know about it, or has it been preordained?"
Simcha Goldin was said to have asked PM Netanyahu whether the deal was already finalized (Photo: Amit Shabi)
Goldin claimed the premier then raised his voice, saying, "I hope this agreement is signed."
His mother was then said to have replied, "You left no way to bring (Hadar) back, you threw away all of the chips we worked so hard to get one after the other."
The prime minister then told the family the call was over, Goldin said.
Concluding his post, Tzur Goldin wrote, "The agreement with Turkey was not merely that, but a deeply seated crisis for my family. It was a watershed line, making us understand that we've lived in an ideal world for 18 months that came crashing down before us—we first understood we were alone."
The post ended by noting that two months later, Herzl Shaul—Oron's father—died "of a broken heart."
