Demonstrations started on Sunday in several cities of 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 which are retained therein.
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An immense Israeli flag, flocked with portraits of kidnapped people, was deployed in Tel Aviv on the “Place des Otages”, which has become emblematic since the start of the war, launched on October 7, 2023 by the unprecedented attack of Hamas in Israel.
The mobilization of Sunday occurs when Israel has announced that it is preparing to take control of Gaza-Ville and neighboring refugee camps with the aim of defeating the Palestinian Islamist movement and freeing the hostages.
This announcement aroused in Israel the dread of hostage families who fear that the operation will lead to the death of their relatives.
AFP
Several important roads have been cut by demonstrators, including the highway connecting Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, where demonstrators set fire to tires and caused large traffic jams, according to local media images.
“Be very much a little”
Sunday, the first day of the week in Israel, the activity was clearly reduced in the streets of Jerusalem, it was also noted.
Around 8 am (5 h GMT), dozens of demonstrators posted before the residence of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asked the government to “end the war” and “bring everyone”, in reference to the hostages.
There too they brandished the portraits of the people abducted, Israeli flags and yellow banners, the color symbol of the hostages.
AFP
The Family and Landing Forum, the main association of hostage relatives, but also the opposition, part of the economic and union world, called for a solidarity strike this Sunday with the hostages in Gaza.
In a new press release on Sunday, the forum assured that “hundreds of thousands of Israeli citizens will paralyze the country today with a clear claim”: “Bring the 50 hostages, put an end to the war”.
The forum has planned many actions in different places in the country, but the epicenter will be the “hostage place”, with a large demonstration scheduled for the late afternoon.
This association also announced the establishment on Monday from a family camp to the Gaza border.
“We are forced to intensify our struggle and do everything to bring our dear beings (…) if we do not put them off now, we will lose them forever,” said the forum.
“For 22 months, we have been calling for a global agreement, but our calls fall into deaf ears and hardened hearts. Time is running out for hostages. Only the people will be able to bring the hostages back to the house, ”he argued.
AFP
Viki Cohen, mother of the hostage Nimrod Cohen, launched on network X the message: “Hello, my child, I hope that you have access to the media somewhere in the tunnels, and that you will see how the people of Israel stops living today for you and for all hostages. Be strong, a little more. Mom”.
“No public order disorder”
Israeli police said they prepare for “reinforced forces” demonstrations. “Thousands of police officers and soldiers from the border security forces will be deployed throughout the country and in various places throughout the day,” said a police statement, which warned that it “will not tolerate any public order”.
Among the 251 hostages captured during the unprecedented attack on 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 Islamic jihad broadcast three videos showing two emaciated and weakened hostages in early August in early August, which shocked in Israel and aroused international condemnation.
After 22 months of war, the Prime Minister is under strong internal and international pressure, on the fate of hostages and to silence the weapons in the Gaza Strip, devastated and prey to a humanitarian disaster.
AFP
The attack on October 7, which sparked the war in Gaza, led to the Israeli side of 1,219 people on the Israeli, mostly civilians, according to an AFP count made from official data.
The Israeli operation in Gaza has already made 61,897, mainly civilians, according to data from the Ministry of Health of Hamas, deemed reliable by the UN.
