By Said Amouri
JERUSALEM (AA) – Thousands of Israelis on Thursday gathered outside Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s residence in Jerusalem and near his home in the city of Caesarea to demand a hostage-prisoner swap deal with Hamas, according to local media.
Earlier on Thursday, Israeli protesters blocked two major highways—one connecting Tel Aviv and Haifa—to demand a hostage-prisoner exchange with Palestinian factions in Gaza and early elections.
The protests were part of a series of "National Strike Day" demonstrations organized by protest leaders to put pressure on Netanyahu's government, Israel's official broadcaster KAN reported.
Channel 12 reported that family members of Israeli hostages in Gaza have closed the Ayalon highway south of Tel Aviv.
"The prime minister abandoned the hostages, and as far as he's concerned, they will be buried in Gaza as long as he retains his seat," the broadcaster stated, citing families.
The Israeli daily Yedioth Ahronoth reported on Thursday evening that thousands of Israelis demonstrated in front of Netanyahu’s residence in Jerusalem, demanding an immediate deal to release all prisoners held in Gaza.
Protesters carried signs reading, "Held in Gaza for a long time."
Thousands more demonstrated outside Netanyahu's home in Caesarea.
They raised a large banner that read, “How much more blood will be spilled until you go?” and demanded that Netanyahu and his government resign or call early elections.
The protesters urged the government to negotiate a hostage-prisoner swap deal with Palestinian factions, according to the newspaper.
In recent weeks, government opponents and families of Israeli prisoners in Gaza have escalated their protests, demanding a hostage swap deal and early elections.
Flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire, Israel has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza since an Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Palestinian group Hamas.
More than 37,700 Palestinians have since been killed in Gaza, most of them women and children, and over 86,400 others injured, according to local health authorities.
Over eight months into the Israeli war, vast tracts of Gaza lie in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine.
Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, whose latest ruling ordered Tel Aviv to immediately halt its military operation in the southern city of Rafah, where over a million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.
*Writing by Mohammad Sio