Protesters call for hostages to be brought home as October 7 anniversary approaches

On Saturday evening, Israelis gathered for protests in support of the hostages across the country. Events took place in Rehovot, Haifa, Tel Aviv, at the HaOgen intersection and on the central stage in Tel Aviv, organized by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum.

The protests, which have been ongoing since the war broke out, intensified after a brief lull that followed the news that the bodies of six hostages – held for months in captivity and killed just before Israeli forces reached them – had been returned to Israel.

As progress in the hostage case appears to have stalled, frustration and pessimism about the possibility of bringing the hostages home appears to be giving protesters new energy.

Statements from hostage families

Yehuda Cohen, the father of hostage Nimrod Cohen, has asked the international community to put pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ahead of a rally in Tel Aviv. Speaking to protest organizer Nava Rozolyo in a clip posted to her X account, he said Netanyahu “is the only (block)” in the hostage deal.

He added that there are no talks about any agreement at the moment and that he would like to see an agreement on the hostages that includes a ceasefire.

Einav Tsengauker, the mother of Matan, who is still held hostage, speaks at a protest rally against the hostage deal in Tel Aviv, September 21, 2024. (Source: AVSHALOM SASSONI/MAARIV)

Protesters also gathered outside President Isaac Herzog’s home in Tzahala, renaming the street where Herzog lives “Abandoning President Street” – covering street signs with stickers of the new name.

The president “normalized the abandonment of hostages held by Hamas by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on October 7, the abandoner, and remained silent in the face of Benjamin Netanyahu and the October 7 government torpedoing the hostage agreements,” the sign read.

“Today marks 351 days since the abandonment of 101 hostages held by Hamas,” the Hostage Families Forum said in a statement ahead of Saturday’s rally.

“The government has disowned them – but there is no way that the citizens of the State of Israel will disown them. They are our sisters and brothers – we are their only chance.”

“Only an unprecedented, broad and strong public struggle can bring them back,” the forum added.

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Einav Tsengauker, the mother of Matan, who was kidnapped in Gaza, claimed that “Netanyahu is cooperating with Sinwar and giving him what he wants – a regional war. The hostages and all Israeli citizens will pay the price.”

The Women’s Hostage Recovery Protest also aimed to appeal to the public to take to the streets and demand that the hostages be brought home.

“Especially this week, when total war is just around the corner, when the prime minister prefers the entire coalition to a professional defense minister, when (government hostage coordinator) Gal Hirsch spreads yet another story about a deal that doesn’t exist, when it looks like we’re moving away from a real agreement – now is the time to take to the streets,” the protest group said.

“We will not allow cheap manipulation to push away the hostages and cover up the abandonment. We will not allow the government to give up on the 101 hostages.”