The demonstrations began this Sunday, August 17 in several cities in Israel to ask Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to end the war in the Gaza Strip and obtain an agreement for the release of the hostages held there.
An immense Israeli flag was deployed, caressed with portraits of kidnapped people, in Tel Aviv in the “place des ootages”, which has become emblematic since the beginning of the war, launched on October 7, 2023 by the unprecedented attack of Hamas in Israel.
Sunday’s mobilization occurs when Israel has announced that it is preparing to take control of the refugee fields of Gaza-Ville and neighbors with the aim of defeating the Palestinian Islamist movement and freeing the hostages. This announcement aroused in Israel the fear of hostage families who fear that the operation will lead to the death of their relatives.
Protesters in front of the Netanyahu residence
The protesters have cut several important roads, including the road that connects Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, where the protesters set fire to the tires and caused large traffic jams, according to images of local media.
On Sunday, the first day of the week in Israel, the activity was clearly reduced in the streets of Jerusalem, it was also observed.
Around 8 am (7 am, French time), dozens of protesters published before the residence of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asked the Government to “end war” and “bring everyone”, in reference to the hostages. There they also soft the portraits of the kidnapped people, Israeli flags and yellow banners, the color symbol of the hostages.
The family and landing forum, the main association of hostage relatives, but also the opposition, part of the economic and trade union world, requested a solidarity strike this Sunday with the hostages in Gaza.
In a new press release on Sunday, the forum said that “hundreds of thousands of Israeli citizens will paralyze the country today with a clear claim”: “It brings to the 50 hostages, end the war.” The forum has planned many actions in different parts of the country, but the epicenter will be “place of Hotages”, with a great demonstration scheduled for the afternoon.
“Time is running out for hostages”
This association also announced the establishment on Monday from a family camp to the border of Gaza. “We are forced to intensify our struggle and do everything possible to bring our dear beings (…) If we do not postpone them now, we will lose them forever,” the forum has been alarmed.
“For 22 months, we have been asking for a global agreement, but our calls fall into deaf ears and hardened hearts. Time is running out for hostages. Only people can take hostages home,” he argued.
Viki Cohen, mother of the hostage Nimrod Cohen, launched in Network X the message: “Hello, my son, I hope you have access to the media somewhere in the tunnels, and that you will see how the people of Israel stop living today for you and for all hostages. Be strong, still a little. Mom.”
Israeli police said they prepare for “reinforced” demonstrations. “Thousands of police and soldiers from the border security forces will be deployed throughout the country and in several places throughout the day,” said a police communication, who warned that “it will not tolerate any disorder in public order.”
Among the 251 hostages captured during the unprecedented attack against the Palestinian Islamist movement in Israel on October 7, 2023, 49 remain detained in Gaza, including 27 died, according to the Israeli army.
Hamas and the Islamic Jihad broadcast three videos that show two demacred and weakened hostages in early August at the beginning of August, which shocked Israel and aroused international sentence.
After 22 months of war, the prime minister is under strong internal and international pressure, on the fate of the hostages and to silence the weapons in the Gaza Strip, devastated and dams of a humanitarian disaster.
The October 7 attack, which caused the war in Gaza, led to the Israeli side of 1,219 people in the Israelis, mostly civilians, according to an AFP count made of official data.
The Israeli operation in Gaza has already carried out 61,897, mainly civil, according to data from the Hamas Ministry of Health, considered reliable by the UN.
Source: BFM TV
