Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed on Sunday to maintain preventing in Gaza, at the same time as anguish over the Israeli army’s unintentional killings of three hostages within the enclave raised new questions on how his authorities is prosecuting the struggle.
Mr. Netanyahu started a authorities assembly in Tel Aviv on Sunday by studying from a letter that he mentioned got here from households of Israeli troopers killed preventing in Gaza.
“You may have a mandate to battle; you shouldn’t have a mandate to cease within the center,” Mr. Netanyahu learn in Hebrew, in line with a press release from his workplace.
As a “testomony” to the fallen troopers, Mr. Netanyahu mentioned, Israel’s army would “battle to the top.”
The letter seems at odds with the message coming from kin of Israelis nonetheless held hostage in Gaza, lots of whom have taken to the streets to demand a cease-fire in order that their family members can return house.
Weekly rallies in assist of the hostages have drawn hundreds of protesters to Tel Aviv to display outdoors the Israeli army’s important headquarters. Information that the Israeli army had mistakenly killed the three hostages on Friday added a way of urgency to the rally on Saturday night time.
Lots of of protesters gathered on a central boulevard in Tel Aviv to display in opposition to the federal government earlier than marching via the town to affix the hostage rally.
“We see the present strategy isn’t working,” mentioned Deborah Galili, a protester from Tel Aviv. She mentioned she needed Mr. Netanyahu’s authorities to pursue a peaceable decision that will carry the hostages house and finish the preventing.
A weeklong cease-fire between Israel and Hamas final month noticed 105 Israeli hostages freed in change for the discharge of 240 Palestinians from Israeli jails earlier than negotiations broke down and the struggle resumed on Dec. 1.
“Since then, Ms. Galili mentioned, “we’re not seeing extra hostages coming house alive.” A number of hostages have been confirmed lifeless by Israel’s army in current weeks.
Some protesters mentioned that they believed the unintentional killings of the three hostages by Israel’s army would mark a turning level in individuals’s willingness to publicly criticize Mr. Netanyahu and the best way his authorities is dealing with the struggle.
Ms. Galili was considered one of them.
“Mr. Netanyahu has not taken accountability,” she mentioned, including that he must “step up” and take accountability or step down.
Efi Toledano, one other demonstrator from Tel Aviv, had protested Mr. Netanyahu’s authorities earlier than the struggle. Whereas he stopped in wake of the Oct. 7 assault on Israel, the deaths of the hostages prompted him to renew protesting on Saturday night time.
“We had been taught that when there’s a struggle, we’re all to be quiet and assist the troopers,” mentioned Mr. Toledano. He mentioned that the deaths of hostages prompt that Mr. Netanyahu is likely to be concerned with persevering with the struggle even on the expense of hostages’ lives. Due to that, he added, “We’re returning to sound our voice and battle in opposition to this authorities.”
