Relatives of the remaining hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip rallied Saturday in front of the private residence of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, demanding a deal to return the hostages.
“Do you know where your child slept last night?” Shelly Shemtov, whose 21-year-old son Omer is among the hostages, begged the crowd outside Prime Minister Netanyahu's Caesarea home. The Times of Israel reported.
“Can you call your child right now and check on him?'' “I haven't known where my child is for 105 days,'' cried the desperate mother.
Relatives of Shemtov and other hostages call on the government to take bolder steps to secure the release of more than 100 people held captive since the Oct. 7 Hamas terror attack on southern Israel. They camped overnight in front of Prime Minister Netanyahu's home.
The Israeli government previously announced that there were still more than 130 hostages in Gaza after a temporary ceasefire in November, but only about 100 were believed to be alive.
On Friday, Eli Štibi, whose son Idan was kidnapped from the Nova Music Festival, began a hunger strike in front of the prime minister's home.
The grieving father vowed to eat only a quarter of a pita a day (the same amount given to hostages on some days) until Prime Minister Netanyahu agreed to meet him.
Many of the rally participants carried Israeli flags or signs with the faces of loved ones on them.
Empty seats representing people detained in Gaza were also displayed.
“We came here to demand some action from Prime Minister Netanyahu,” said Udi Goren, whose cousin Tal Khaimi was killed on October 7. Video posted on X By journalist Yardena Schwartz.
“We know that negotiations are on the table. We know that he hasn't accomplished anything in terms of delivering results. [the hostages] He refused to sign the contract and was sent home. And we demand action,” he insisted.
“We are losing hostages every day,” Goren added. “We have to get back to the house before we all get back to the coffin.”
Over the past few months, the 74-year-old Prime Minister Netanyahu has repeatedly promised to continue the war until Hamas is decisively defeated and the hostages are returned, but he has not given any details on how exactly Israel would achieve these goals. was ambiguous.
The emotional weekend protests also came just days after former Israeli military commander Gadi Eisenkot denounced Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's insistence that an Israeli counterattack in Gaza would result in the return of hostages.
“[The hostages] We will only come back alive if there is an agreement related to a significant cessation of fighting,” Eisenkot, whose son was killed during fighting in Gaza in December, said in a television interview on Thursday. Ta.
As part of official efforts to free the hostages, Israeli forces distributed leaflets in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, on Saturday.
The leaflet contained photos of dozens of hostages and a message promising a reward for anyone who revealed their whereabouts.
“Do you want to go home?” the printout said, along with a phone number and a link to a website with more names and images.
Hamas-affiliated media outlet Almaji al-Amni subsequently warned Palestinians not to provide any information to the Israeli military.
with post wire
