Israeli Channel 12 reported on Saturday evening that tens of thousands of Israelis took to Habima Square or the Square of the Abducted in central Tel Aviv to protest and pressure Benjamin Netanyahu’s government to finalize a prisoner exchange deal with Hamas.
In a related context, the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs commented on Saturday on a video from the Al-Qassam Brigades, showing the weight loss of an Israeli prisoner. The Israeli Foreign Ministry stated in a release that “our hostages in Gaza are starving and being tortured,” noting the urgent need to provide medical care and appropriate food for the hostage Avitar held by Hamas.
The statement emphasized the necessity of the immediate release of hostages in Gaza, asserting this as the real famine in the sector.
On Saturday evening, the Al-Qassam Brigades broadcasted a video of one of the Israeli prisoners held in the tunnels of the Gaza Strip. The prisoner appeared in a deteriorating health condition, showing clear signs of emaciation and malnutrition.
The Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades had published on Friday a video of one of the Israeli hostages held in the Gaza Strip since the attack carried out by the movement on October 7, 2023.
Israel resumed its bombing of the Gaza Strip on March 18, after a pause of about two months, specifically since the ceasefire agreement with Hamas came into effect on January 19, following stalled talks to extend the first phase of the agreement or transition to its second phase. The ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas was supposed to continue once the first phase was extended, which ended on March 1, or transition to its second phase, but disagreements between Israel and Hamas over the next steps prevented that.
