Israelis protest in Tel Aviv, West Jerusalem for prisoner exchange with Hamas, cease-fire in Gaza

By Ibrahim Al Khazen

JERUSALEM (AA) - Israelis took to the streets Friday in Tel Aviv and West Jerusalem to demand a prisoner exchange with Hamas and a much-needed cease-fire in the Gaza Strip.

Demonstrators gathered outside the US Embassy in Tel Aviv, urging President Joe Biden to pressure Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to strike a deal with the Palestinian resistance group.

Protesters waved banners that read: "Mr. Biden, Help Us Save Them" and "Bring Them All Home Now," according to an Anadolu correspondent.

The US, along with Egypt and Qatar, are mediating to broker a deal for the exchange of Palestinian and Israeli prisoners, as well as to secure a long-term cease-fire.

In West Jerusalem, Israelis demanded an end to the war against Gaza.

They waved signs that said: "Stop the War Now" and "Stop Ethnic Cleansing Now."

''The protesters, call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire to stop the genocide, siege and starvation in Gaza, a hostage and prisoner deal, and an end to the occupation,'' the Free Jerusalem group said on X.

''Our goal- freedom and equality for all from the River to the Sea,'' it added.

Also, dozens of left-wing Israeli activists staged a demonstration outside the Hatzerim Israeli Air Force base in southern Israel in protest against ongoing airstrikes on Gaza, according to the Voices Against War group.

Protesters held banners that read: ''The blood is on your hands'' and ''Stop bombing Gaza,'' it wrote on X.

Hamas is believed to be holding nearly 134 Israelis following a cross-border attack on Oct. 7.

Tel Aviv said the attack killed less than 1,200 people.

Flouting the International Court of Justice's provisional ruling, Israel continues an onslaught on the Gaza Strip, where at least 30,228 Palestinians have been killed, mostly women and children, and 71,377 injured since Oct. 7, according to Palestinian health authorities.

The Israeli war on Gaza has pushed 85% of the territory'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 by the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January 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