Protest from Relatives of Israeli Prisoners
The umbrella organization formed by the families of Israeli prisoners made an appeal under the slogan “Last chance” in order to draw attention to the ongoing negotiations in Doha. Following this appeal, hundreds of people gathered in front of the Defense Ministry complex in the Israeli capital Tel Aviv in the evening. The prosecutors gathered at two separate gates of the ministry complex and demanded that the government sign the ceasefire and prisoner swap agreement on the table as soon as possible.
The demonstrators accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government of delaying the ceasefire and prisoner swap agreement in Gaza for political reasons, and drew particular attention to the influence of far-right figures in this process. Speaking to AA, one of the demonstrators, Yair, stated that he joined the protest to make his voice heard against Prime Minister Netanyahu, whom he described as a “criminal.” Yair stated that Netanyahu did not want to sign the prisoner swap agreement because of the threat of far-right members of his coalition to overthrow the government.
Another protester, Dora Cohen, said they had gathered every evening and every weekend to sign the prisoner swap agreement, referring to the negotiations in Doha and calling today a “decisive moment.” Cohen stressed that Prime Minister Netanyahu was “one of the biggest obstacles” to the prisoner swap agreement. She said that the lives of Israeli prisoners in the Gaza Strip were in danger and that this situation was increasing the loss of life. She also noted that Palestinians were facing a major humanitarian crisis.
Protesters marched through the streets of Tel Aviv, closing some of the city’s main roads to traffic, and made their demands louder. Such actions are aimed at questioning the deep pain experienced by the families of prisoners and the government’s stance on the issue.
