Thousands of Israelis demonstrated in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem on Saturday to demand a deal that would allow about 120 hostages still held by Hamas to return to Israel.
Participants in the protests accused the prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu of sabotaging the indirect negotiations with the Islamists to reach an agreement.
“Netanyahu is killing the hostages,” read a large banner carried by protesters in Tel Aviv. One of the speakers, a former hostage, said: “I may look okay on the outside, but the pain weighs on me more than anyone can imagine.”
He was one of the lucky ones who was held captive in a house and not a tunnel. “So if I have suffered cruel conditions and abuse, what happens to the other 120 hostages?”
Thousands of people reportedly demonstrated in Jerusalem in front of Netanyahu’s residence and in the seaside resort of Caesarea in front of one of Netanyahu’s villas.
Smaller gatherings took place in Haifa, Beersheba and Herzliya.
Hundreds of family members and supporters have marched on foot from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem over the past four days.
The war in Gaza was sparked by the unprecedented terrorist massacre of more than 1,200 people in Israel, killed by militants from Hamas and other groups on October 7. About 250 people were abducted to Gaza, and about 120 of them may still be alive.
Israel responded with massive airstrikes and a ground offensive. Given the high number of civilian casualties and the catastrophic situation in the Gaza Strip, Israel has been criticized internationally.
Negotiations over the release of the hostages have been stalled for months as Qatar, Egypt and the US act as mediators in an attempt to broker a ceasefire in Gaza and exchange the remaining Hamas hostages for Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails.
