Ex-IDF chief slams PM’s ‘unforgivable failures,’ as opposition leaders express horror over footage of emaciated hostages

Members of the opposition accuse the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of abandoning the hostages and ignoring their suffering, in statements expressing outrage over the emaciated state of hostages Rom Braslavski and Evyatar David in the latest Islamic Jihad and Hamas propaganda videos.

“As chief of staff, I never imagined that there would come a day when we would see pictures of Jews dying and there would be no savior,” says Former IDF chief of staff and ex-National Unity MK Gadi Eisenkot.

“Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the ‘October 7’ cabinet ministers are responsible for an unforgivable failure, and for the failed management of the war that brought us to this point,” he charges, demanding that they immediately make the “Jewish, ethical, moral decision to immediate sign a hostage deal — a comprehensive one, even at the cost of a permanent ceasefire.”

Meanwhile, Opposition Leader Yair Lapid notes that on the agenda for the upcoming weekly cabinet meeting is, “for the seven-thousandth time: a discussion about threats to the prime minister’s life.”

Absent from the agenda, however, is any discussion on the hostages or about negotiations for their release.

“I obviously condemn any threat to the prime minister’s life, but he is the most secure person in Israel,” says Lapid. “I suggest replacing this topic with a discussion about the far more real threats to the life of Evyatar David.”

התמונות של רום ברסלבסקי ואביתר דוד שוברות את הלב. חייבים לצאת לרחובות כל יום, כל היום, עד שכולם יחזרו הביתה בעסקה. pic.twitter.com/v8QHB0yBMB

— Yair Golan – יאיר גולן (@YairGolan1) August 2, 2025

In a video from a demonstration on Begin Road, in Tel Aviv, The Democrats chair Yair Golan urges the public to take to the streets in protest as a way to “save our brothers and sisters” from captivity in Gaza.

“You saw the terrible photos of Rom and Evyatar, we must release them. They have no time,” says the left-wing leader.

He says the public must stage a “giant, powerful protest, every day, all day” until they and all the hostages are released.

“Don’t give up. We will save our brothers and sisters. We will bring everyone home,” he vows.