Protesters gather in Tel Aviv again to pressure government to reach a deal
Large protests continued in Tel Aviv, Israel, for a third consecutive night Tuesday as hundreds took to the street to call on the government to reach a cease-fire deal that would bring home the remaining hostages held in Gaza.
The protests have come after the Israeli military said six hostages were killed by their captors in Gaza just as troops were closing in on their location. Many Israelis blame Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the mounting number of dead hostages and are calling for a cease-fire agreement to free the remaining hostages.
Meanwhile, the U.S. says it is working on a new cease-fire and hostage deal proposal with its Egyptian and Qatari counterparts. And the United Nations Security Council plans to convene on Wednesday to discuss the war.
Earlier Tuesday, the Israeli military announced it has killed a Hamas militant who appeared in a widely viewed video from Oct. 7, where he was seen drinking from a bottle of cola in front of two children wounded in a grenade attack that had just killed their father.
The military identified the militant as Ahmed Fozi Wadia, a commander in a Hamas commando battalion. The Israeli military said aircraft on Saturday struck a compound in Gaza City where Hamas militants were operating, killing eight militants, including Wadia.
Hamas-led militants killed 1,200 people and took 250 as hostages in their Oct. 7 attack, which triggered the war in Gaza which is now in its 11th month and has killed more than 40,000 people, according to Gaza health officials. —(AP)
Here’s the latest:
Former members of Netanyahu’s cabinet say Israel doesn’t need to control Gaza’s border with Egypt
TEL AVIV, Israel — Two former members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s war cabinet have rejected the Israeli leader’s claim that Israel must retain control over Gaza’s border with Egypt.
Benny Gantz, a former defense minister and military chief of staff, said Israel should focus on bringing the remaining hostages held in Gaza back home safely. Hamas has demanded an Israeli withdrawal from the area as part of any deal.
Gantz told a news conference Tuesday that Israel has the capability of returning to the “Philadelphi corridor” if needed.
“Philadelphi is an operational challenge, not an existential threat,” he said. “We need to bring back the hostages, even at a heavy cost.”
He was joined by his political partner, Gadi Eisenkot, another former military chief. Both men resigned from the war cabinet in June, accusing Netanyahu of mismanaging the war and putting his own political survival ahead of the country’s interests.
Netanyahu’s office dismissed the criticism. “Those who do not contribute to the victory and the return of our hostages would do better not to interfere,” it said.
Protesters gather in Tel Aviv again to call on government to reach a cease-fire deal
TEL AVIV, Israel — Hundreds of protesters have gathered in central Tel Aviv for a third consecutive night, calling on the government to reach a cease-fire deal that would bring home the remaining hostages held in Gaza.
A new wave of protests erupted Sunday after Israel said it recovered the bodies of six hostages who were killed by Hamas militants in captivity. The army said the hostages were killed as soldiers were closing in on the tunnel where they were being held, and forensics experts say they were shot at close range.
Tuesday’s protest took place a day after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated his insistence that Israel retain control of Gaza’s border with Egypt. Hamas has demanded a full Israeli withdrawal as part of any deal.
People attend a rally demanding a cease-fire deal and the immediate release of hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip in Tel Aviv, Israel, on Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)
Protesters say that time is running out to save the hostages still alive in Gaza. Israel estimates that Hamas is holding about 65 living hostages, in addition to the remains of some 35 others.
Emona Or, the sister of hostage Avinatan Or, said the government needs to “make sure that they do everything to bring them back alive, not like we saw people returning this week, God forbid.”
Many protesters held blue and white Israeli flags and yellow flags meant to symbolize solidarity with the hostages. “Seal the deal,” said one poster.
Police briefly scuffled with some protesters, arresting at least one man.
White House working on new cease-fire and hostage deal
WASHINGTON — The White House says it is developing a new cease-fire and hostage deal proposal with its Egyptian and Qatari counterparts to try to bring about an agreement between Israel and Hamas to end the war in Gaza.
National security spokesperson John Kirby said the “executions” of six hostages, including one American, by Hamas, “underscores the sense of urgency” in the talks. Kirby declined to frame the latest proposal as a “final” or “take-it-or-leave-it” offer to the parties, but he also declined to speculate on what might happen if the latest press for a deal wasn’t successful.
Responding to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s insistence that Israel would maintain a military presence along the entirety of Gaza’s border with Egypt, Kirby noted that Israel had already agreed that, as part of the first phase of a cease-fire deal, it would pull its troops from densely populated areas, including in the so-called Philadelphi corridor. That has emerged as a late obstacle to an agreement.
“That’s the proposal that Israel had agreed to,” he said.
Kirby declined to address widespread protests inside Israel calling on Netanyahu to reach an agreement, saying, “I’ll let the Israeli people speak for themselves.”
UN Security Council to discuss Israel-Hamas war in the wake of hostage killings
UNITED NATIONS — The United Nations Security Council will discuss the conflict between Hamas and Israel and the crisis in the Palestinian territories on Wednesday in the wake of the killing of six hostages in Gaza. Even routine bureaucratic questions about the meeting are sparking disagreements between U.N. members.
Israel’s U.N. ambassador Danny Danon’s wrote on X early Tuesday that, “following my urgent request, the UN Security Council will finally convene on Wednesday for the first time since the October 7 massacre to hold an official discussion on the hostages.”
The U.N. ambassador from Malta, which served as Security Council president in April, wrote back to Danon on X that the council had adopted a Nov. 15 resolution that called for the release of all the hostages during humanitarian pauses in the fighting between Israel and Hamas.
“At the time of adoption your representative stated in the Council that Israel will not implement the resolution,” she wrote. “Stop spreading misinformation.”
France, the United Kingdom and the United States backed Israel’s request for a Security Council meeting. Israel wrote in a press release Tuesday that “the Security Council must condemn the terrorist organization Hamas and demand the immediate release of the abductees.”
Algeria, another Security Council member, separately requested a meeting on the Middle East crisis that will be part of Wednesday’s meeting.
The Israeli Health Ministry said autopsies had determined the hostages were shot at close range and died on Thursday or Friday. The army said the bodies were recovered from a tunnel in the southern Gaza city of Rafah.
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