TEL AVIV (Reuters) – Thousands of Israelis protested on Saturday calling for the prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu Accept a ceasefire agreement with the Islamist movement Hamas that includes the repatriation of the remaining Israeli hostages from Gaza.
At a rally in Tel Aviv, held as Hamas officials met Egyptian and Qatari mediators in Cairo, relatives and supporters of the more than 130 hostages still held said that everything possible must be done to bring them home.
“I’m here today to support a deal yesterday,” Natalie Eldor said. “We have to bring her back. We have to bring back all the hostages, the living and the dead. We have to bring her back. We have to change this government. That must have an end.”
The protests ahead of Holocaust Remembrance Day Yom HaShoah, which falls on May 6 this year, came as the war in Gaza neared the end of its seventh month and international pressure to end the fighting grew.
“The only thing that keeps us going is the hope that Bar lives and survives,” said Ora Rubinstein, the aunt of Bar Kupershtein, who was arrested along with more than 250 others when Hamas-led gunmen attacked Israeli communities in near Gaza raged on Oct. 7.
Many of the hostages are believed to be dead, but the families want all of the hostages returned.
“Everyone needs to be brought back. We will not abandon them like the Jews were abandoned during the Holocaust,” said Hanna Cohen, an aunt of 27-year-old Inbar Haiman, who was initially believed to have been taken hostage on October 7 It was later discovered that he was killed. Her body is believed to still be held by Hamas in Gaza.
According to Israeli figures, about 1,200 Israelis and foreigners were killed on October 7, the deadliest day in Israel’s history.
In response, Israel launched a devastating attack on the Gaza Strip, destroying large parts of the enclave and killing more than 34,000 people, according to Palestinian health authorities.
Netanyahu’s government has insisted it will not end the war until Hamas is destroyed and all hostages are returned. However, intensive efforts are underway to bring about an end to the fighting, which could lead to a full ceasefire.
However, Netanyahu faces pressure from nationalist religious parties in his coalition to reject a deal with Hamas and continue the long-promised offensive against the southern Gaza town of Rafah.
(Writing by James Mackenzie; Editing by Daniel Wallis)