Hostages' families say they have become ‘victims of Netanyahu's cheap politics'
Families of Israeli hostages in Gaza blocked a highway in Tel Aviv on Wednesday to demand the return of all captives as the war on the Palestinian enclave entered its 600th day.
According to Haaretz daily, the families blocked the traffic on a highway in central Tel Aviv, demanding a comprehensive agreement that guarantees the release of all hostages, even at the cost of ending the war in Gaza.
“600 days of missing our loved ones… For 600 days, Hamas has been holding them, and the bloody Israeli government abandoned them to preserve the well-being of its coalition (government),” the families said in a statement.
They said that their family members have become “victims of Netanyahu's cheap politics.”
The families blamed the Israeli government for “not presenting any appropriate proposal ever” for the release of hostages in Gaza, saying Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu prefers to return the hostages “in selective lists, sentencing some to life imprisonment and others to death, instead of returning them all.”
Israel estimates 58 hostages are still held in Gaza, including 20 believed to be alive. At the same time, more than 10,100 Palestinians remain in Israeli prisons, facing torture, hunger, and medical neglect, according to Palestinian and Israeli human rights reports.
Hamas has repeatedly offered to release Israeli captives “all at once” in exchange for ending the war, Israeli troop withdrawal, and the release of Palestinian prisoners.
Israeli opposition and hostage families accuse Netanyahu of prolonging the war to appease his far-right coalition partners and maintain power.
Rejecting international calls for a ceasefire, the Israeli army has pursued a brutal offensive against Gaza since October 2023, killing more than 54,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children.
The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants last November for Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.
Hello, the comments you share on our site are a valuable resource for other users. Please respect other users and different opinions. Do not use rude, offensive, derogatory, or discriminatory language.
The floor is all yours.
