Brother of slain hostage Jonathan Samerano appeals for unity during rally at Hostages Square

Yair Samerano, brother of slain hostage Jonathan Samerano, whose body is still held in Gaza, speaks at the protest at Hostages Square.

He implores Netanyahu to sign a deal for the return of the hostages, including the return of Hisham al-Sayed and Avera Mangistu, who have been held captive in Gaza since 2014 and 2015, as well as the bodies of Oron Shaul and Hadar Goldin, who were killed during the 2014 Gaza war and whose bodies were never returned.

Samerano ends his speech with a plea to promote national cohesion. He tells the audience not to use epithets like “Bibi-ist” and “leftist traitors.” “It hurts us,” he says, “our power is in our unity.”

The Samerano family was recently targeted by zealous anti-government protesters, who were said to shout out the hostage’s mother at a rally last week, accusing her of being a Netanyahu acolyte.