TEL AVIV: Thousands of people took to the streets in the Israeli capital city of Tel Aviv against their Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for his failure to bring back the hostages from Hamas captivity alive.
The protesters were chanting slogans and demanding the prime minister to ensure that the remaining hostages in Hamas captivity are brought home safely. They accused Netanyahu of being responsible for the killing of scores of hostages by Hamas.
The police said that 15 protesters were arrested after clashes erupted when the police tried to disperse the protesters. A number of police cops were also injured.
It was the second biggest protest in Israeli against the government of Netanyahu for his failure to hold talks and bring back the hostages from Hamas captivity.
On September 2, massive protests swept Israel following the death of six hostages in Gaza.
Crowds estimated by Israeli media to number up to 500,000 strong demonstrated in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv and other cities, demanding that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu do more to bring home the remaining 101 hostages, about of a third of whom Israeli officials estimate have 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.
The Israeli military announced the recovery of the bodies from a tunnel in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, as a polio vaccination campaign began in the war-shattered Palestinian territory and violence flared in the occupied West Bank.
The bodies of hostages Carmel Gat, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Eden Yerushalmi, Alexander Lobanov, Almog Sarusi and Ori Danino were returned to Israel, military spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari told reporters.
A forensic examination determined they were “murdered by Hamas terrorists in a number of shots at close range” 48-72 hours previously, an Israeli health ministry spokesperson said.
Netanyahu, who faces growing calls to end nearly 11 months of war with a deal for a ceasefire and the release of remaining hostages, said Israel would not rest until it caught those responsible. “Whoever murders hostages – does not want a deal,” he said.
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