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The faces of the final twenty surviving Israeli hostages who are now reunited with their families can be seen as you walk into Temple Beth Israel in northwest Fresno.<\/p>\n
“They will never be the same, but we hope they return to an existence that will be meaningful and positive,” Rabbi Rick Winer said.<\/p>\n
Rabbi Winer says the release of hostages is a relief, but many questions remain.<\/p>\n
“What happens next? Can they maintain the calm? Can they forge a peace that’s really going to be lasting?” Rabbi Winer asked.<\/p>\n
Buses full of Palestinian prisoners and detainees are now returning home amid the ceasefire.<\/p>\n
But Palestinian Layla Darwish- president of the Palestine Freedom Project in the Central Valley – says that’s only somewhat comforting.<\/p>\n
“They’re likely to return to makeshift tents,” she explained. “Some will return to realize that they’ve lost loved ones including some will learn they’ve lost their entire family.”<\/p>\n
She and Rabbi Winer say there is still a long road ahead.<\/p>\n
“What will that resolve if we do not have, the Palestinians do not get their liberation?” Darwish stated on the ceasefire.<\/p>\n
“It needs to be a livable place. it needs to have self-determination. The people that live there need to have a just and humane existence,” Rabbi Winer said. “If the people of Gaza and the West Bank can thrive together alongside the people of Israel then everyone is better off.”<\/p>\n
For news and weather updates, follow Tiffany Olin on Facebook<\/a>, Twitter<\/a> and Instagram<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n