Rabbi Chaim Eideles, a popular charedi rabbi who is currently the rabbi of North Tel Aviv and conducts daily radio programs on halachic matters, referred to the possibility of a hostage exchange deal and said that it might not be permitted by Halacha.
When the Halacha discusses freeing captives for more than their value- the subject is monetary. Here however we are talking of freeing terrorists who will threaten the lives of Jews and therefore the matter is very different,” Rabbi Eideles told the Kol Chai radio station.
“We have a rule that we don’t prefer one life to that of another. We saw in previous deals that the terrorists freed returned to their terrorist activities. Who is more paradigmatic than Hamas leader Sinwar who was already in Israeli jail and was released in a hostage deal to go back to his ways and lead terrorists.”
Rabbi Ovadia zts’l wrote a comprehensive Teshuva about the Entebbe operation in halacha. The kidnappers demanded the release of 40 terrorists and Rabbi Ovadia said that if releasing terrorists doesn’t directly cause murder, they can be released to save those in mortal danger. Yet it is clear that now, with terrorists declaring that they will return to terror- we can’t make such deals.”
Rabbi Eideles, who is married to Rabbi Aryeh Levin’s descendant and runs the Ish Tzadik Haya charity organization, says that unity has a different meaning after October 7th.
“Once they asked Rabbi Aryeh Levin how he can accept everyone, and he answered ‘I just listen to them’. That's the secret. People in Tel Aviv who didn’t want to say hello to us before now understand that we are one nation and must live here in harmony.”