Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Rubaie Sawaid, writing for the Israeli newspaper Arab 48, reports that on Saturday enormous crows demonstrated in Israel against the government’s plan to take over all of Gaza, demanding that the release of the remaining over two dozen Israeli hostages in the Strip be prioritized.
He writes that the families with hostage relatives asserted that the cabinet of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sealed the fate on Thursday of the hostage, ensuring that those still living will be killed and the bodies of the dead will never be located. They said that its decision demonstrated that “this is not a political, security cabinet but a cabinet of death.”
Some 60,000 Israelis demonstrated Saturday evening in Tel Aviv and others in several other cities against the government’s decision to occupy Gaza City and to demand a one-stage hostage exchange deal in return for an end to the war on Gaza. They closed Tel Aviv’s Highway 20, known as Ayalon Street, into which all the major thoroughfares feed bringing traffic from other towns, blocking it on its north-south axis at several points and setting fires.
Euronews reports that at one point crowds invaded the Channel 13 TV studio what it was on air broadcasting a popular program, wearing shirts with the logo “Leave Gaza!” They chanted “No business as usual with this war!”
“Israeli” protestors storm Channel 13 studios on-air demanding end to war
Arab 48 reports that Israeli police announced that they had arrested three demonstrators and had reopened Ayalon Street to traffic.
Hostage families and their supporters rallied at the gate of the Ministry of Security in Tel Aviv. They savaged Netanyahu and warned that if he tried to occupy parts of the Gaza Strip and ended up killing the hostage, they would ensure it became a major issue in the next political campaign, reminding the Israeli public night and day that Netanyahu had had the ability to conclude a hostage and exchange and had decided to kill the Israeli hostages instead.
AP: Israelis call for release of remaining Gaza hostages, protest Israel government
Israelis call for release of remaining Gaza hostages, protest Israel government
(In the above AP clip, the wife of a hostage says in English, “Now, the government has decided to expand the war and push deeper into Gaza, but my husband is still there. Every invasion, every bullet, and every airstrike could cost him his life. This isn’t just a military decision; it could be a death sentence for the people we love most.”)
Arab 48 reports that, addressing the prime minister, a mother of one of the hostages said “Your hands will be stained with their blood.” She underscored that there is no popular support for directly militarily occupying Gaza City, and most of the people want an end to the war and the return of everyone to their homes. Instead of finding a path to an armistice, she said, Netanyahu had condemned Israelis to a forever war.
Photo of Yoqneam St 13, Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel by Shai Pal on Unsplash
She pointed out that the Israeli army chief of staff opposed the cabinet plan, saying that it would send Israeli troops into an ambush of death. She called on the Israeli public to come out into the streets and to bring the government and the economy to a standstill.
The leaders of these demonstrations planned to set an official deadline for the start of a general strike that would involve private businesses, organizations and unions. The goal is to secure the release of the hostages and to spare troops from the high casualties that close fighting in Gaza City will entail.
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