‘Day of Disruption’: Families, supporters of Israeli Gaza captives protest

Israeli protesters are demanding the release of the captives in Gaza and the end of Israel’s ongoing occupation of the besieged enclave in large numbers across the country.

Demonstrators chanted for an immediate ceasefire on Tuesday in Tel Aviv and other cities, holding photos of Israeli prisoners taken during the Hamas-led attack on October 7, 2023, and calling for major roads to be blocked.

In what was billed as a “Day of Disruption,” organized by the captives’ families and alleged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government of abandoning their relatives, hundreds of people gathered outside Israel’s Ministry of Defense headquarters in central Tel Aviv.

Einav Zangauker, whose 25-year-old son Matan is still imprisoned in Gaza, claimed that the government has been conducting a war without a clear goal for 690 days. The prime minister repeatedly chose to sacrifice civilians for the sake of his rule, she told the Reuters news agency, “but we could have saved hostages and soldiers.”

Itay Chen, a 21-year-old US-Israeli soldier whose body is being held in Gaza, is the father of Ruby Chen, who pleaded with officials to resume discussions. Return to the table of negotiations. There is a good chance that we can negotiate to free all the hostages, he said.

Israel is starting a new offensive in Gaza City in spite of the growing international condemnation and IPC-backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IFS) response.

According to Israeli media, the military chief claimed that “a deal was on the table” to free the captives and that the occupation of Gaza City would “present a great danger” to their lives.

Chief of Staff Lieutenant-General Eyal Zamir was cited as saying “Now it’s in Netanyahu’s hands” during his Sunday visit to the Haifa naval base by Israel’s Channel 13 news.

Israel is continuing its genocide in Gaza as a result of a recent poll by an Israeli research institute that found overwhelming support for the claim that there are “no innocents” in the Gaza Strip.

According to the survey, 76 percent of Jewish-Israeli respondents endorsed the claim that no civilians in Gaza can be held to be innocent.

Nearly half (47%) of voters who support opposition parties overwhelmingly voted in favor of the claim. The findings, according to researchers, demonstrate a deeply entrenched public acceptance of Israel’s devastating military operation, which has resulted in the massacre of more than 62, 000 Palestinians and the destruction of a large portion of Gaza.

Researchers Ron Gerlitz and Ron Gerlitz wrote in a post on X that “these are challenging findings.” They “give insight into the massive number of Palestinian civilian casualties killed in Gaza.”

According to Haaretz, dozens of protesters gathered outside a restaurant in Jerusalem that was hosting a meeting of the Binyamin Regional Council, a body responsible for dozens of illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank. The protesters chanted, “They are starving, you are celebrating,” according to Haaretz.

At least 64 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks since dawn, according to the Gaza-based ministry of health, including 13 who were shot dead while seeking urgent aid.