Albanian Daily News had an exclusive interview with the Israeli ambassador to Tirana Galit Peleg, focusing on the deal between Israel and Hamas. The ambassador dwelt on many aspects of the war and the accord, closing by expressing the hope for good news. Below is the full interview:

Albanian Daily News: Madam Ambassador, let’s start with the ceasefire accord between Israel and Hamas on the Gaza Strip. Your Excellency could you, please, elaborate on this move?

Israeli Ambassador Galit Peleg: Israel is forced to agree to painful concessions. We are aware that this means that thousands of terrorists will go back to threaten the lives of Israelis. 

So far, Hamas has consistently blocked a deal and prevented the war’s conclusion. It was reiterated by the United States officials at every opportunity, including Secretary of State Blinken and National Security Council Spokesman Kirby.

The price is high and inhumane: 33 hostages, alive or dead, will be released in the first phase, with Hamas setting a price of 50 terrorists for each woman or child and 30 terrorists for each man. In addition, Israel will release another 1,000 additional terrorists who were arrested since October 8 but did not participate directly in the massacre.

Also Israel agreed to withdraw from several zones the IDF is occupying at the moment though keeping the strategic passages.

But saving all hostages is first priority. Unlike our neighbors who sanctify death, we sanctify life, and what is most important right now is to bring the hostages home. Remember the youngest hostage was taken at 9 months the oldest was 86! In Judaism we say that he who saves one sole as if he saves a whole world. Well, we have 98 worlds to save and time is playing against us.

-Do you think that the above-mentioned agreement could lead to possibilities for putting an end to the bloody and devastating war claiming thousands of killed and massive disaster?

- The war will conclude with the return of all the hostages and the removal of Hamas’s regime in Gaza. Hamas must be dismantled of its military and governmental capabilities to end this suffering and prevent another October 7th from occurring.

The purpose of the deal is primarily to bring hostages home. The price is high, but their return is worth any cost. Israel and the international community must ensure that a terrorist organization does not control Gaza. As long as they continue to threaten the security of Israeli citizens while also causing suffering to the residents of Gaza, it is hard for me to see a complete end to the war.

It is very important to clarify that Israel has no aspirations regarding Gaza; we evacuated Gaza in 2005 with the intention of allowing the Palestinians to live in peace. They elected a murderous terrorist organization to control them, and since then, no elections have been held there. Hamas has become the dominant force in all aspects of Palestinian life in Gaza. If the Palestinians prefer to live under terror, so be it. But as long as Hamas poses a real threat to the security of Israeli citizens, it is our duty to continue to thwart any intention to harm us.

If there is a desire to leverage this deal into a long-term agreement, it is imperative to end the reign of terror in Gaza that threatens Israel.

- What could you share with us about the situation in Israel and feelings of ordinary citizens against the background of a war that seems endless? 

- Israel has been at war on several fronts for over a year. It began with the terrible disaster of the massacre, the likes of which we have not known since the Holocaust. And this is no exaggeration! The traces of the massacre are still felt in all walks of life and throughout the country. Thousands of young people who have been traumatized and are trying to recover, tens of thousands of evacuees who have lost family members, homes and jobs. The sights have not disappeared and the recovery will be long. Since that October, we have been in a war that is taking lives, changing the agenda and affecting the economy, the atmosphere. In addition to the nearly 400 fallen soldiers who paid with their lives during the war, the home front has suffered from missile attacks from Iran, Lebanon and Yemen. The Houthis in Yemen continue to launch explosives drones towards Tel Aviv every night as we speak. All of this is affecting the population, both adults and children.

However, there is a feeling in the Israeli public that this war must be won because it is an existential war and at the same time every effort must be made to bring hostages home. The public understands that the price is high and fraught with the risk of the same terrorists returning to activity against Israeli citizens, but the return of the hostages is stronger than any other consideration.

- Ms. Ambassador, the West seems divided on the stance towards Israel with some taking extreme. diplomatic measures? How does Israel react and which are the repercussions of such acts on Israel?

- There is no doubt that most democracies in the world share the same values ??as the State of Israel. First and foremost, fighting terrorism, protecting human rights, humanitarian treatment of peoples at war, and the desire for peace.

Having said that, the responses of some governments in the Western world have revealed a great deal of hypocrisy and double standards in everything related to Israel. Immediately after the massacre, most countries rushed to condemn the massacre, but as soon as Israel began to respond, positions were divided. Many politicians agree in backstage conversations that Israel is obligated to respond firmly and protect its population from terrorism, and many also explicitly say that they would not have acted otherwise.

During the war, Israel repeatedly presented evidence of civilian involvement in terrorist activity, of the joy and celebrations in the streets of Gaza over the slaughter and rape committed by Hamas, of civilian participation in looting, and also of the use of civilian facilities by terrorist organizations such as hospitals, schools and mosques, and of the takeover of agencies such as UNRWA. The documents and photos are in the hands of all relevant parties, including the global media.

It is also important to mention that during the whole war Israel cooperated closely with governments and international agencies to maintain regular entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza.

Unfortunately, in public, there are many who choose to hesitate to condemn the Palestinians for providing support to terrorist organizations and are quick to blame Israel. We see this at the political level and also at the legal level, which has also become an arena that is completely driven by political considerations.

However, precisely during the most difficult challenges that Israel is facing, we also discovered loyal friendships, friends who show loyalty to Israel and loyalty to values, and we are grateful to them.

Terror is not the problem of Israel. Israel constitutes a buffer zone between the radical regimes and their terrorist proxies, and the West. Many governments in Europe have turned to Israel to seek cooperation as they suffered terrorist attacks, Therefore, we expect all democratic countries to stand by Israel in fighting terror. Some of them do but others, are unfortunately, driven by other considerations.

I believe that when the war will be over, relations with those countries will also be restored, perhaps not with extremist governments that even incorporate anti-Semitism in their terminology, such as Ireland and Turkey. but the bottom line is that Israel has very close relations with most countries in the world, certainly with European countries.

- As a follow up do you think that the stance of the US with President Trump in the White House might change?

- The US has always been Israel's closest ally. All Israeli governments, right or left, and with all American presidents, Democrats or Republicans, Israel and the US stood side by side and cooperated closely, in times of peace and certainly in times of war.

At the same time, each country has its own agenda and there are internal considerations that dictate foreign policy. Even during the current war, there were differences, there were a number of moves that Israel made that President Biden didn't support, but he never prevented Israel from acting. It is ok not to agree on every move, even between friends.

Also, on the issue of weapons supplies, there’s no doubt that without American aid, it could have been more challenging for IDF to fight and protect Israeli citizens.

President Trump’s strong call to release the hostages was heard loud and clear, both in Jerusalem and in Gaza, and we are grateful for the incoming president's contribution to promoting the current deal.

Regarding the future, like many other countries, we hope for positive developments.

The change of presidents in the White House will undoubtedly affect our region. There are good relations between Netanyahu and Trump, we hope that they will continue in the current term as well.

- There are two wars going on - in the Middle East and Ukraine. Are there any similarities between them or they are being fought for different causes?

- War is war, and every country that is at war is aware of the difficulties it brings with it. There are similarities between the two wars. Both Israel and Ukraine were attacked by enemies and forced into a situation they did not want. The citizens of both countries have been in a state of grief and uncertainty for a long time. The loss of human lives, the damage to the economy, and property, are challenges that both countries will have to deal with for a long time to come, even after a ceasefire is reached. The Ukrainian people, like the Israeli people, are determined to win the war and end it in a way that will ensure long-term security for their citizens.

From the beginning of the war in Ukraine, Israel volunteered to assist on the humanitarian front, and I personally had the privilege of taking part in this cause, as someone who coordinated Israel's government donations at the beginning of the war. I even joined delegation of Israeli doctors to establish a field hospital in western Ukraine during 2022. Israel continues to support Ukraine even during our war, although at a slightly lower level due to the circumstances.

On the other hand, while Ukraine is fighting a country, an army, Israel is fighting a war against a terrorist organization that uses its own people as human shields, and in multi fronts. Israel is determined to defeat the terrorist organizations that threaten Israel.

An interesting fact that is unique to Israel: many Israelis who lived in the diaspora for many years, as well as those who left the country to travel around the world, have rushed to return over the past year in order to share in the burden of the war on the front and in the rear. We also saw many volunteers from around the world who came to help at this time with agriculture farms work, with the elderly, children, people with disabilities, and even for animals. Their spirit is making us stronger.

- I follow since long the war situation in the Middle East. I am struck by the fact that never before there was such a disconcerted stance of the Arab world in support of Palestinians. According to you, which might be some of the reasons why such a situation has changed with some being almost indifferent?

- Is it possible that the Arab world has become a little tired of the Palestinians? In 1947, the UN divided the land between the Jews and the Arabs. The Jews established the State of Israel, the Arabs chose war and lost. Some Palestinians emigrated to Arab countries and others remained in the young State of Israel and became citizens with equal rights and their situation has been incomparably better than those who became refugees in Arab countries. After the 1967 war, Palestinians again arrived in Arab countries. Majority of them remained with the status of refugees since those countries refused to give them citizenship. Thus, the Palestinian issue became a permanent issue on the agenda of the Arab world. Over the years, Arab leaders adopted the Palestinian issue as a fig leaf for their rigid regimes, with every extremist action they took, using the Palestinian struggle as an excuse.

Today we see more moderate regimes in the Arab world, so the use of the Palestinians becomes less relevant. In addition, it seems that the Arab world has also understood that the Palestinians are not interested in solving their issue because the establishment of a Palestinian state within agreed borders would remove them from the global agenda. The moderate leaders in the Middle East do not want to be dragged into the conflicts that characterized the 20th century. Therefore, despite the lip service they pay by publicly supporting the Palestinians, they are failing to take practical steps. It seems that the time has come for Europe to also apply pressure on the Palestinians to reach an agreed solution instead of preserving the problem.

- Ms. Ambassador given your seasoned experience do you see light at the end of the tunnel for the end of the war and settlement of the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians so that they have peace?

- I think this is a question that should be addressed to Palestinians. Israel has proven more than once that it is willing to extend its hand not only for peace but also for assistance to its neighbor, but the condition is the cessation of terrorism. Until the massacre of October 7, many in the State of Israel, both in the government and in the public, believed that a strong economy in Gaza would lead to a decrease in terrorism and strengthen the moderate elements in Gaza. Oh, how wrong we were...

As long as a terrorist organization controls Gaza, as long as the Palestinian Authority rewards terrorists for murdering Israelis, it is very difficult to build trust between the parties.

I repeat again and again the role of the international community including the moderate Arab countries: It is not enough to donate billions of euros and dollars after each campaign. The money and the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip must come with restrictive conditions. The international community must be more active in building a long-term society that can lead to the establishment of a strong and democratic entity alongside Israel that will bring prosperity to its citizens and security to its neighbors. Change in education, strengthening civilian infrastructure, and eradicating terrorism, only these will enable peace in our region.

- Let me come home, Your Excellency, being eager to know your opinion about the stance of Albania regarding the conflict vis a vis that of some member countries of the EU, a block which Tirana is working to join and the votes of all members are needed?

- Albania and its government have shown throughout the war a firm stand with Israel and against terrorism, while expressing empathy for the civilian population in Gaza. From my first week in Albania, I noticed that this is a small but determined and courageous nation that sticks to its values, and I was not mistaken. There is no contradiction between Albania's aspiration to join the European Union, which is indeed very worthy, and its support for the shared values ??it has with the State of Israel and the Jewish people.

And it is both coalition and opposition, which proves that our special relations are genuine and not a political matter.

With the exception of a few cases of challenging votes, we greatly appreciate the courageous and sincere stance of the Albanian government and its leaders. There are countries in the European Union that can learn from Albania's courage and sincerity, both historically and in the present.

Allow me to take this opportunity of the new year to wish both our countries to continue the close cooperation and to welcome the decision of Israeli airlines to open direct flights that will undoubtedly promote tourism, business and cultural ties between two such friendly peoples. Hoping for good news!