No Respite

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Hundreds of thousands of protesters took to the streets across Israel on Saturday night to demand the government negotiate with Hamas to secure the release of hostages. The demonstrations occurred as a Jordanian gunman killed three Israelis while Israeli forces in the West Bank shot dead an American-Turkish activist.

In the coastal city of Tel Aviv, an estimated 500,000 demonstrators gathered in what organizers claim to be Israel’s largest-ever protest, according to the Times of Israel. Another 250,000 joined demonstrations in Jerusalem, Haifa, and other cities.

Tensions between demonstrators and police flared in Tel Aviv, where protesters blocked major roads, including the Ayalon Freeway, and lit bonfires. Five people were arrested during clashes with police, and several demonstrators attempted to push past security lines.

The protests were driven by the execution of six Israeli hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip late last month, reigniting public anger toward Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s handling of the conflict and stifled efforts to have captives released.

Demonstrators have become increasingly frustrated with Netanyahu’s refusal to make concessions in ongoing negotiations with Hamas to secure the release of the remaining hostages. Critics accused Netanyahu of endangering the lives of those still in captivity by relying on military pressure rather than diplomatic solutions.

Former hostages and their families have voiced their outrage, with some arguing that military operations in Gaza are leading to more hostage deaths.

Meanwhile, violence at the Allenby Bridge border crossing between the West Bank and Jordan escalated on Sunday when a Jordanian gunman shot and killed three Israeli security officers, the Associated Press reported.

The attacker later died in a shootout with Israeli forces. Jordan announced an investigation into the attack.

Observers said the incident is connected to the 11-month-old conflict in Gaza – ignited by Hamas forces’ incursion into Israel that killed more than 1,200 people and saw around 250 taken hostage – and which has further strained relations between Israel and Jordan.

Although Jordan made peace with Israel in 1994, it remains critical of Israeli actions and policies in Gaza.

In a separate incident in the West Bank, Aysenur Eygi, a 26-year-old American-Turkish activist, was shot and killed by Israeli troops during a protest against settlement expansion, CBS News wrote.

The US and Turkish governments condemned the killing as “murder” and called for an investigation. Eygi’s death underscores the broader rise in violence in the West Bank, with at least 661 Palestinians and 23 Israelis killed in the region since October 2023.