Relatives of hostages and their supporters have staged a demonstration near Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's residence in Jerusalem, demanding the immediate release of hostages held in Gaza since October 7, 2023. — Reuters File
On Sunday, during commemorations for the October 7 attacks, relatives of Hamas attack victims disrupted a speech by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. According to a live broadcast, Netanyahu stood motionless at the lectern as audience members shouted, interrupting his speech for over a minute. One protester repeatedly yelled, 'My father was killed.'
Public and diplomatic pressure has mounted on Netanyahu's administration to secure the release of captives still held in Gaza. Israeli spy chief David Barnea is set to travel to Doha on Sunday for talks aimed at restarting negotiations for a Gaza hostage release deal. Families of the remaining hostages, along with several Western leaders, have urged the Israeli government to broker an agreement following the killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar earlier this month.
Israeli and US officials, as well as some analysts, have suggested that Sinwar was a significant obstacle to a deal that would allow the release of 97 hostages still held by militants in Gaza, 34 of whom the Israeli military claims are dead. Critics in Israel have also accused Netanyahu of hindering mediation efforts for a truce and hostage-release deal.
Earlier on Sunday, Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant stated that military action alone will not achieve the country's war aims, which include bringing home the hostages. 'Not all objectives can be achieved through military operations alone... To fulfill our moral duty to bring our hostages home, we will have to make painful concessions,' Gallant said in a separate speech marking the Hebrew calendar anniversary of the Hamas attack, which on October 7 triggered the ongoing war in the Palestinian territory.
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