Families of Israeli captives held in the Gaza Strip have begun a sit-in protest outside the home of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, demanding their immediate release.
Organized by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, dozens of family members of the captives launched the protest on Sunday night to pressure the government to reach a deal to ensure the return of the remaining captives.
According to Israeli media reports, protesters waved signs with the faces and names of the captives, shouting: “The cabinet is responsible for the lives of the hostages!”
The families have pitched tents outside Netanyahu’s home, and intend to stay in the tents until “the prime minister agrees to a deal to return the hostages,” the Times of Israel reported, quoting one of the organizers.
בני משפחות החטופים פוצצו דיון של ועדת כספים:
אי אפשר להמשיך בסדר היום, רק על דבר אחד צריך לדבר עכשיו! pic.twitter.com/6r3hEcmvh1— Noa Shpigel (@NoaShpigel) January 22, 2024
Storming the Knesset
On Monday morning, a group of relatives of Israeli captives also stormed a parliamentary committee session in Jerusalem, demanding that the lawmakers do more to release their children, Reuters reported.
“The action by about 20 people signaled growing domestic dissent in the fourth month of the Gaza war,” according to Reuters.
The Resistance Movement, Hamas, is reported to have captured at least 239 people.
The temporary pause in November reportedly led to the release of 105 captives, including 81 Israelis, 23 Thai citizens, and one Filipino.
BREAKING:
⚡ 🇮🇱 Hostage families storm Israeli Knesset
The Knesset was suspended after families of the hostages forced their way through security.
The anger and impatience towards Netanyahu is growing. Israel is incapable of either defeating Hamas or freeing the hostages.… pic.twitter.com/dXRXDauYbp
— Megatron (@Megatron_ron) January 22, 2024
Palestinian prisoner advocacy groups said that as part of the temporary pause, Israel released 240 Palestinian prisoners, including 71 women and 169 children.
Recent weeks have seen growing calls in Israel for an end to the assault on the Gaza Strip.
Last Tuesday, Israeli police forcibly dispersed a group of protesters in Tel Aviv calling for their government to “stop the genocide” in the Gaza Strip.
According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, 25,295 Palestinians have been killed, and 63,000 wounded in Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza starting on October 7.
Palestinian and international estimates say that the majority of those killed and wounded are women and children.
(The Palestine Chronicle)
