Israel: Protests begin demanding a prisoner exchange deal with Hamas and Netanyahu's dismissal

Hebrew media reported today, Sunday, the start of new demonstrations in various Israeli regions, demanding an exchange deal with Hamas and the dismissal of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The demonstrators closed the main Ayalon Street in the greater Tel Aviv area in central Israel.

Earlier on Saturday evening, thousands of Israelis demonstrated in several areas to demand a prisoner exchange deal with Hamas and early parliamentary elections, raising huge banners reading "Deal Now," according to Hebrew media.

The official broadcasting authority reported that thousands of Israelis demonstrated in Kaplan Square in central Tel Aviv, demanding a prisoner exchange deal and not to miss the opportunity again. The demonstrators chanted "Deal now" and raised banners with the same slogan. About 2,000 Israelis also demonstrated in the city of Caesarea (north) to demand a prisoner exchange deal and early elections, according to the official broadcasting authority. The demonstrators demanded early parliamentary elections in Israel.

In turn, the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper (private) said that thousands of Israelis demonstrated in a number of other areas, including the Karkur Junction, Demak Hefer (north) and the city of Rehovot (center). The scope of the demonstrations is expected to expand and increase in intensity in the following hours, especially in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.

For months, mediation efforts led by the United States, Qatar and Egypt have been trying to reach an agreement between Israel and Hamas that would include a prisoner exchange from both sides and a ceasefire that would allow humanitarian aid to enter the Palestinian enclave. However, the mediation efforts have been hampered by Netanyahu’s refusal to respond to Hamas’s demands to stop the war.

On May 6, the Palestinian factions had previously agreed to a proposal for an agreement to stop the war and exchange prisoners, which was put forward by Egypt and Qatar, but Israel rejected it, claiming that it "did not meet its conditions" and began invading the city of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, which was rejected by the international community.

For 9 months, Israel has been waging a devastating war on Gaza with full American support, leaving more than 125,000 Palestinians dead and wounded, most of them children and women, and more than 10,000 missing amid massive destruction and famine that has claimed the lives of dozens of children. Tel Aviv continues the war, ignoring the UN Security Council resolutions to stop it immediately, and the International Court of Justice orders to take measures to prevent acts of genocide and improve the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza.