Media Wire

Thousands protest in Israel demanding government to resign, end to Gaza war

Mass demonstrations have taken place in Israel, with Israelis calling for the return of captives held in Gaza, the removal of Prime Minister Netanyahu’s government and an end to the war in Gaza.

Several thousand supporters, friends and families of the Israeli captives taken by Hamas on October 7 rallied in Tel Aviv’s “Hostage Square” on Saturday.

“This is unprecedented because, throughout the beginning of this war, everyone had agreed, including the anti-government protesters, that they needed to be unified at a time when there is war, at a time when captives are still being held in Gaza,” stated Al Jazeera’s Sara Khairat, reporting from Tel Aviv.

The turnout of people in the square was much higher than in recent weeks when a few dozen to a few hundred people gathered. “Now, quite a few thousand people [are] gathered here,” she added.

Protesters shouted: “Bushah bushah, bushah”, meaning “shame, shame, shame” in reference to the government, with some also blaming Netanyahu and other officials for the events of October 7.

“This just gives you a sense of how angry some of these people are,” Khairat continued.

In Jerusalem, people gathered in front of the house of Israeli President Isaac Herzog to demonstrate, demanding the return of the more than 100 captives still held in Gaza.

Around 240 people were taken hostage during Hamas’ attack on Israel on October 7. Dozens have been freed but many more remain missing, presumed to be held by the Palestinian organization and other groups in Gaza, following the breakdown of a temporary truce in November.

The Israeli prime minister’s office believes 135 hostages remain in Gaza, 116 of whom are alive.

Hamas has stressed that it rejects any forms of negotiations about prisoner exchanges “under the continuing Israeli genocidal war”.

Gaza’s Health Ministry reported the death toll since the start of the attacks rose to 22,700 on Saturday, most of them being women and children.

According to UN estimates, the war has displaced 1.9 million of Gaza’s 2.3 million population.

The UN has described the situation in Gaza as “beyond catastrophic”, with residents struggling to find food, fuel and water, while living in crowded shelters or tents.

IFP Media Wire

Reports and views published in the Media Wire section have been retrieved from other news agencies and websites, and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Iran Front Page (IFP) news website. The IFP may change the headlines of the reports in a bid to make them compatible with its own style of covering Iran News, and does not make any changes to the content. The source and URL of all reports and news stories are mentioned at the bottom of each article.

Recent Posts

Envoy condemns Israel’s admission of murdering of Hamas chief in Iran

Iran's permanent ambassador to the UN Amir Saeid Iravani has strongly condemned Israel’s “brazen admission”…

25 minutes ago

Lifting WhatsApp, Google Play filtering in Iran ‘a positive step, but more needed’

Lifting of the filtering on WhatsApp and Google Play on the internet in Iran on…

28 minutes ago

Malayer’s mini world: A tourism gem in western Iran

The “Mini World” recreational and tourism complex in Malayer, in the western Iranian province of…

45 minutes ago

Video: Sisi warns of ‘chaos and destruction’ in Egypt following Assad’s fall in Syria

An Egyptian intelligence-owned television channel has released a propaganda video of President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi…

2 hours ago

Israel kills at least 8 in West Bank raids

The Israeli army and military aircraft have killed at least eight Palestinians, including two women…

2 hours ago

Iran lifts Ban on WhatsApp, Google Play in a landmark decision

In a significant move towards greater digital accessibility, the Supreme Council of Cyberspace, chaired by…

13 hours ago