Valley locals have mixed feelings amid Israel-Hamas ceasefire

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.

“They will never be the same, but we hope they return to an existence that will be meaningful and positive,” Rabbi Rick Winer said.

Rabbi Winer says the release of hostages is a relief, but many questions remain.

“What happens next? Can they maintain the calm? Can they forge a peace that’s really going to be lasting?” Rabbi Winer asked.

Buses full of Palestinian prisoners and detainees are now returning home amid the ceasefire.

But Palestinian Layla Darwish- president of the Palestine Freedom Project in the Central Valley – says that’s only somewhat comforting.

“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.”

She and Rabbi Winer say there is still a long road ahead.

“What will that resolve if we do not have, the Palestinians do not get their liberation?” Darwish stated on the ceasefire.

“If the people of Gaza and the West Bank can thrive together alongside the people of Israel then everyone is better off,” Rabbi Winer said.

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