According to the Hebrew newspaper Haaretz, "about 250 current and former soldiers from the Israeli army's elite naval commando unit, Shayetet, signed a letter on Tuesday supporting an end to hostilities in Gaza as part of a prisoner exchange deal.
For its part, the Israeli Army Radio reported: "Graduates of offensive cyber units and former members of the Special Operations Division of the Military Intelligence Directorate issued messages in which they said: How can the Prime Minister (Benjamin Netanyahu) decide the fate of the kidnapped?"
In turn, the Hebrew newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth reported: "Nearly 200 members of the families of the kidnapped and other families, including survivors of captivity, published a letter of support for the reservists and civilians, calling for an end to the war and the return of the kidnapped."
She added, "In their letter, they affirmed their support for the pilots' letter and additional letters with the same demand, thanked everyone who made the same appeal, and demanded the immediate return of the kidnapped people to their homes."
Since April 10, petitions demanding the return of the prisoners have been submitted by military personnel, academics, and security officials, ranging from reserve forces who can be called up for service, retirees, and prominent former leaders such as former Prime Minister Ehud Barak.
Several petitions were signed. The first was signed by about 1,000 Air Force personnel, later joined by about 1,000 academics from higher education institutions. A second petition was signed by hundreds of personnel from the Armored Corps and the Navy. A third was signed by dozens of reserve military doctors. A fourth was signed by hundreds of personnel from the 8200 Intelligence Unit. A fifth petition was signed by hundreds of personnel from special forces and elite units, such as the 13th Paratroopers Brigade, and the Shaldag, Sayeret Matkal, and Moran units.
A sixth petition was signed by 200 doctors from various units in the occupation army, and a seventh petition was signed by 250 members and leaders of the Mossad foreign intelligence agency.
Members of the prisoners' families have announced their support for the petitioners, who assert that the continuation of the war on Gaza serves not Israel's security interests, but rather the personal and political interests of Netanyahu and his government.