Israeli protesters demand early elections, release of hostages

The protesters, gathered at Horev junction in the city of Haifa, were carrying banners with slogans such as “Elections Now” and “Save the Hostages”.

In the city of Rehovot, dozens of people protested in front of the Weizmann Institute of Science, chanting slogans against Netanyahu, according to the newspaper.

In the coastal town of Caesarea, protesters rallied in the rain before marching toward one of the private residences of Netanyahu. Some were seen calling for the prime minister’s removal, chanting, “Guilty, guilty, guilty!”

And in Tel Aviv, demonstrators gathered at Habima Square to call for immediate elections.

“The government of Israel declares in its actions that it is not competent and that the good of the state and its citizens are not at the top of its mind,” the protesters said in a statement.

“We will go out to demonstrate that our future depends only on us – we the people will determine our destiny!,” they added.

Israelis have been protesting almost daily, demanding early elections and the release of hostages in Gaza, but major demonstrations are held on Saturdays.

Israeli officials estimate that there are around 136 hostages still held in Gaza since Hamas launched an attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

Palestinian resistance factions, led by Hamas, captured around 250 people in towns and cities near Gaza and last November exchanged dozens of them with Israel during a seven-day humanitarian pause.

In return, Palestinian prisoner institutions reported that Israel released 240 Palestinian prisoners from its jails during the pause, including 71 women prisoners and 169 children.

Israel launched a deadly offensive on the Gaza Strip on Oct. 7 that killed at least 27,200 Palestinians and injured 66,500 following a surprise attack by Hamas. Nearly 1,200 Israelis are believed to have been killed in the Hamas attack.

The Israeli offensive has left 85% of Gaza’s population internally displaced amid acute shortages of food, clean water and medicine, while 60% of the enclave’s infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.