Massive protests erupted across Israel on Sunday after the death of six hostages in Gaza, with growing frustration over the leadership’s inability to secure a ceasefire and release Israeli captives.
Israeli media estimated that up to 500,000 people took to the streets in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, and other cities, calling on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to take stronger action to bring home the remaining 101 hostages, of whom Israeli officials estimate about one-third have already died.
In Jerusalem, protesters blocked streets and demonstrated outside the prime minister’s residence. Aerial footage showed Tel Aviv’s main highway filled with protesters holding flags with pictures of the slain hostages.
Israeli television footage showed police directing water canons at demonstrators who had blocked roads. Local media reported 29 arrests.
The Israeli military reported recovering the bodies of hostages from a tunnel in Rafah, a southern Gaza city. This announcement came as a polio vaccination campaign launched in the conflict-ridden Palestinian territory and violence intensified in the West Bank.
Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari confirmed that the remains of Carmel Gat, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Eden Yerushalmi, Alexander Lobanov, Almog Sarusi, and Ori Danino had been returned to Israel.
According to an Israeli health ministry spokesperson, a forensic examination determined that the hostages had been “murdered by Hamas terrorists in a number of shots at close range” 48 to 72 hours prior to their recovery.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, under increasing pressure to conclude nearly 11 months of conflict with a ceasefire and the release of remaining hostages, vowed that Israel would not rest until the perpetrators were caught. “Whoever murders hostages – does not want a deal,” he stated.
Hamas officials have blamed Israel for the deaths of the hostages, accusing it of refusing to agree to a ceasefire. Sami Abu Zuhri, a senior Hamas figure, stated, “Netanyahu is responsible for the killing of Israeli prisoners,” and urged Israelis to choose between Netanyahu and a peace deal.
The conflict erupted after Hamas and other militants killed about 1,200 people and took around 250 hostages in attacks on Israel on October 7.
Since then, Israel’s offensive has severely impacted Gaza, where at least 40,738 Palestinians have died, and displaced residents are suffering from inadequate shelter and severe hunger.
Credits: REUTERS/Florion Goga
“HAMAS WILL BE PUNISHED,” BIDEN SAYS
Facing rising public frustration, Arnon Bar-David, head of Israel’s trade union federation, called for a general strike on Monday to pressure the government into reaching a deal. He announced that Ben Gurion Airport, Israel’s main air transport hub, would be closed from 8 a.m. (0500 GMT).
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, a frequent critic of Prime Minister Netanyahu, also advocated for an agreement, while opposition leader and former Prime Minister Yair Lapid urged people to participate in the demonstration in Tel Aviv.
In a final effort to prevent the protests, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, a hardline member of Israel’s security cabinet, requested the attorney general to block the strike.
The Hostage Families Forum demanded that Prime Minister Netanyahu take responsibility and clarify the delays in reaching an agreement.
They stated that the six hostages returned on Sunday “were all murdered in the last few days, after surviving almost 11 months of abuse, torture, and starvation in Hamas captivity. The delay in signing the deal has led to their deaths and those of many other hostages.”
Netanyahu’s office confirmed that he had spoken with the family of Lobanov, one of the recovered hostages, to apologize and express “deep sorrow.”
However, Gat’s family declined to meet with the prime minister and instead urged Israelis to join the protests.
“Take to the streets and shut down the country until everyone returns. They can still be saved,” urged Gil Dickmann, a cousin of the deceased Gat, on X. U.S. President Joe Biden expressed being “devastated and outraged” by the deaths of 23-year-old Israeli American Goldberg-Polin and the other hostages.
He promised that “Hamas leaders will pay for these crimes” and vowed to “keep working around the clock for a deal to secure the release of the remaining hostages.”
Speaking from Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, Biden remained “optimistic” about achieving a ceasefire deal.
Despite months of intermittent negotiations mediated by the U.S., Qatar, and Egypt, a deal has yet to be secured, even with increased U.S. pressure and repeated visits by top officials.
Chief Hamas negotiator Khalil Al-Hayya, based in Qatar, stated on Al-Jazeera that the group would not agree to a deal unless Israel fully withdraws from the Gaza Strip, including the Philadelphi and Netzarim corridors—key sticking points in the talks.
POLIO IMMUNIZATIONS
Israel and Hamas agreed to halt fighting in Gaza for at least eight hours daily from Sunday to Tuesday to allow for the vaccination of 640,000 children against polio.
Children, accompanied by family members, flocked to a UN clinic in Deir Al-Balah, with the health ministry reporting that 72,611 children were vaccinated on the first day.
This campaign follows last month’s confirmation of a baby being partially paralyzed by the type 2 polio virus, marking the first such case in the territory in 25 years.
Despite the pause, Israeli forces continued clashes with Hamas militants across Gaza, targeting a Hamas command center in a former school in Gaza City.
The Palestinian Civil Emergency Service reported 11 deaths, with many more injured. In Khan Younis, an Israeli airstrike resulted in two deaths and ten injuries, raising the total death toll in Gaza for the day to 27.
YOU MAY ALSO READ: Nigeria grapples with Fuel shortages as NNPC faces severe Financial Strain