Tens of thousands of Israelis have rallied against Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, demanding a Gaza hostage deal.
The rallies in Tel Aviv and other cities came after the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) recovered the body of hostage Elad Katzir.
Protesters chanted “elections now”, and “Elad, we’re sorry”, local media reported.
Later, police forcibly dispersed the Tel Aviv crowd.
Anti-government protesters were joined by families of hostages held in Gaza. Demonstrators expressed their frustration with the government’s inability to free the around 130 hostages who remain in Gaza, held by Hamas and its allies.
Earlier on Saturday the IDF recovered the body of Elad Katzir, who was seized and taken to Gaza during the Hamas attacks on southern Israel on 7 October. He appeared alive in a hostage video released in January.
“Elad Katzir managed to survive three months in captivity. He should have been with us today. He could have been with us today,” protester Noam Peri told a BBC reporter.
Organisers said the protest in Tel Aviv had drawn 100,000 people, while other counts put attendance at around 45,000. The demonstrations were the latest of a series of huge anti-government protests demanding that Prime Minister Netanyahu step down, amid fury that he has failed to free the remaining hostages.
A car ploughed into crowds at the protest in Tel Aviv, injuring five. Police said the driver was arrested.
Some political leaders denounced the apparent ramming attack. War cabinet member Benny Gantz called it “horrific”.
On Sunday – exactly six months since the Hamas attacks triggered the war in Gaza – negotiators plan to meet in Cairo to attempt to reach a ceasefire in the brutal war.
According to some media reports, CIA Director Bill Burns and Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani will join negotiators from Egypt, Israel and Hamas.
Source BBC News
