Relatives of Israeli hostages in Gaza block highway, burn tires to demand deal for captives

By Abdelraouf Arnaout

JERUSALEM (AA) - Relatives of Israeli hostages in Gaza blocked the highway between the cities of Jerusalem and Tel Aviv on Friday, demanding the government to reach an immediate deal to exchange hostages with Hamas.

“Relatives of the prisoners in Gaza closed the highway between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, and sat inside cages demanding the immediate return of the hostages,” the Israeli Channel 12 reported.

They chanted, “the government's life is not at the expense of the hostages.”

The relatives of the hostages set fire to car tires, while some of them sat in iron cages placed on the street, according to the Israeli broadcasting authority.

The demonstrators chanted “Now... Now”, signaling the demand for an immediate agreement to exchange hostages with Hamas.

For its part, the police announced, in a statement, the closure of part of the highway near the West Jerusalem, redirecting traffic to an alternative street.

Channel 12 quoted Yifat Calderon, a relative of one of the hostages, as saying, “the chances of the hostages' return alive are diminishing. We need to awaken the government and Bibi (Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu), and they must understand that an agreement must be reached now.”

She also said in a message addressed to Netanyahu, “Mr. Prime Minister, you are the head, and it is your responsibility to bring them back home. Go for a deal, and ignore (National Security Minister Itamar) Ben-Gvir and (Finance Minister Bezalel) Smotrich.”

Calderon added, “bring back home those you abandoned and who have been in hell for 154 days. There is no complete victory without the return of the hostages, and if you cannot reach an agreement now, make way for someone who can.”

Recently, the families of the hostages in Gaza have increased pressure on the government to reach an agreement that includes exchanging hostages with Palestinian prisoners and a prolonged cease-fire in the strip.”

Since last Sunday, negotiations have been underway in Cairo with the participation of Egypt, the United States, Qatar, and Hamas to cease fire between the Gaza Strip and Israel, according to the Al-Qahera News private channel, on Wednesday.

Israel estimates the presence of more than 125 hostages in Gaza, while it holds in its prisons at least 8,800 Palestinians, according to official sources from both sides.

A cease-fire between Hamas and Israel prevailed for a week from Nov. 24 to Dec. 1, 2023, during which there was a cease-fire and exchange of prisoners and extremely limited humanitarian aid was brought into Gaza, through Qatari, Egyptian, and American mediation.

More than 30,800 Palestinians have been killed and nearly 73,000 others injured in Israel’s ongoing offensive in Gaza amid mass destruction and shortages of necessities.

Palestinian groups estimate that thousands of Palestinians have been detained by Israeli forces in the Gaza Strip since Oct. 7.

Israel has also imposed a crippling blockade on the seaside enclave, leaving its population, particularly residents of northern Gaza, on the verge of starvation.

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 stands accused of genocide at 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 Rania Abu Shamala