The protest for the release of the hostages picked up speed over the weekend. On Saturday and Sunday, stormy demonstrations were held in dozens of locations, including the Kirya military headquarters in Tel Aviv and in front of the Knesset in Jerusalem.
Danny Elgarat, the brother of Itzhak Elgarat, who was taken hostage in the Gaza Strip, sharply criticized Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday morning, saying that he is "waiting for the end of the term to return the hostages - as an achievement for the elections."
"This is not a protest, it is a struggle. We are fighting to get them back and will not remain silent. If it does not suit Netanyahu that these are his people, he should get a new country, a new people. What is he waiting for? That we come to Sara and say ‘thank you?’ It's shameful that this is what we deal with."
'Netanyahu is like the captain of the Titanic'
Later, Elgarat said that Netanyahu "is like the captain of the Titanic, lost at sea and telling us that in a moment he will defeat Hamas."
He added, "[Netanyahu] wants to release the hostages towards the end of his term, which he will have as an achievement to present in the elections. Everything with him is calculated."
Finally, he shared a chilling moment from his last conversation with his brother Itzhak before he was kidnapped to the Gaza Strip and lost contact with him.
"When Itzhak spoke to me on the phone before the abduction, he said, 'This is the end, this is the end.' It's not his end, but the end of Netanyahu."
Yesterday, as mentioned, demonstrations took place in front of the Knesset in Jerusalem and in front of the Kirya in Tel Aviv.
During the protests, the police dispersed some of the demonstrators on Begin Street in Jerusalem using water cannons after they blocked it.
Additionally, several dumpsters were set on fire in the area. After a short time, the road was reopened to traffic.
Against the backdrop of the protest against the government in Jerusalem, several clashes were recorded between activists of "Brothers in Arms" and ultra-Orthodox Jews near Mea Shearim.
This occurred after about a hundred protesters arrived at the square and expressed support for the "Conscription Law." Two people were arrested on the spot, one for knocking down a police motorcycle and the other for lighting an Israeli flag on fire.