JERUSALEM: As negotiations for a truce that includes a swap agreement with Hamas were about to start in Cairo, hundreds of Israelis marched towards Jerusalem on Saturday, demanding the release of the hostages held in Gaza.
A column of protesters, led by the families of hostages taken by Palestinian militants during a deadly Hamas offensive in southern Israel on October 7, makes their way down a winding highway to Jerusalem, stopping as the sun sets.
Carrying Israeli flags, yellow balloons and hostage posters, they began a four-day march through one of the sites affected by the October attack. More protesters were expected to take part in the demonstration in front of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s official residence.
Israelis marched in support of the families of the abducted and hoped they would soon be free and safe.
Gaza ceasefire talks are scheduled to resume on Sunday in the Egyptian capital. US President Joe Biden has said he hopes a ceasefire will be reached by Ramadan, the Muslim fasting month, which begins on March 10.
Dozens of hostages may be released if an agreement is reached.
“This is the only humane thing that can happen,” said Yair Mozes, whose 79-year-old father Gadi was kidnapped from Kibbutz Nir Oz. “They must be (coming) home. That’s it.”
The United States, Egypt and Qatar have been brokering ceasefire talks since January. An earlier deal led to a week-long ceasefire in November, with Hamas freeing more than 100 hostages, mostly women, teenagers and children, and Israel freeing about three times as many Palestinian women and a teenage prisoner.
Nearly five months into the war in Gaza, 134 hostages are still being held in isolation in the Strip, Israeli officials say. They include soldiers and civilians, men and women, children and their younger siblings.
