Protesters have also demanded an immediate ceasefire to end more than eight months of fighting in Gaza, in which nearly 38,000 Palestinians and at least 318 Israeli soldiers have died.
Tens of thousands of protesters have gathered in Tel Aviv to demand that the Israeli Government do more to achieve release of the hostages that Hamas go on holding in Gaza.
The protesters carried photographs of some of the Israelis held captive during the Hamas raid on Israel last Octoberin which about 250 people were arrested.
Protesters have also demanded a immediate ceasefire to put an end to more than eight months of fighting in Gazain which almost 38,000 Palestinians and at least 318 Israeli soldiers have died.
“I am here tonight on behalf of my brother Keith, who has been 267 days as a hostage in Gaza. I am here to speak on his behalf. He cannot speak for himself. “I’m here to tell everyone who will listen and even those who won’t listen,” said Lee Siegel, whose brother Keith was kidnapped by Hamas last year.
“The war must end”
“Any deal we can make has to happen. The war must end. “My brother has to come home,” added the protester.
But in the Weekly demonstrations also have a strong anti-government component: many protesters demand the prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu call new elections and resign. Some accuse him of prioritizing his political survival over the lives of Israeli hostages.
“The continuation of this war means the murder of the hostages by the Israeli government. The blood is on his hands. Time and time again, Netanyahu has sabotaged this deal at the moment of truth, boasting in his own voice or through an unnamed government official, saying that he will not agree to end this war. Netanyahu must not be allowed to sabotage this agreement as well“said Snir Daan, whose cousin Carmel is still held in Gaza.
Axios reported Friday that Washington officials had proposed a new hostage agreement and ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in an effort to reach an agreement.
The efforts of Arab mediators have not achieved a cessation of hostilities conclusive, and Hamas and Israel blame each other for the lack of progress.
Hamas claims that Any agreement must include the total withdrawal of the Israeli Army from Gaza, but Israel has in principle only accepted temporary pauses in the fighting, claiming that the complete eradication of Hamas It is a prerequisite for Israel’s national security.
The Israeli offensive in retaliation for the Hamas raid on Israel has left the densely populated Gaza Strip almost completely in ruins.
