Families of Israeli hostages in Gaza block highway in Tel Aviv

By Zein Khail

JERUSALEM (AA) - Families of Israeli hostages held in Gaza blocked a highway in central Tel Aviv late Tuesday before police forcefully intervened and dispersed them, according to Israeli media.

Dozens of demonstrators and relatives of the hostages blocked the Ayalon Highway near Hashalom Interchange, Haaretz reported.

Police forcefully removed the protesters, who were sitting in the road, and arrested two family members of hostages, it added.

Indirect negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas mediated by Qatar and Egypt are taking place in Qatar. But the talks have yet to yield a deal for a prisoner exchange.

Hamas, which is believed to be holding nearly 130 Israeli hostages, is demanding an end to Israel’s ongoing offensive on the Gaza Strip in return for any hostage deal with Tel Aviv.

A previous deal in November 2023 saw the release of 81 Israelis and 24 foreigners in exchange for 240 Palestinians, including 71 women and 169 children.

Israel has waged a deadly military offensive on Palestinian territories since an Oct. 7 cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas which killed around 1,200 people.

More than 32,400 Palestinians have since been killed and nearly 74,800 injured amid mass destruction and shortages of necessities.

The Israeli war has pushed 85% of Gaza’s population into internal displacement amid acute shortages of food, clean water and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, which in January issued an interim ruling that ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.

*Writing by Mohammad Sio in Istanbul