Hostages’ families call for 500-minute fast on Monday to mark 500 days since their loved ones were abducted to Gaza

By Jessica Steinberg

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16 February 2025, 2:51 pm

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Jessica Steinberg, The Times of Israel's culture and lifestyles editor, covers the Sabra scene from south to north and back to the center

Demonstrators protest for the release of the hostages and against the government, outside the IDF's Kirya military headquarters in Tel Aviv, February 15, 2025. (Miriam Alster/Flash90)

The families of hostages call for a fast tomorrow that will last 500 minutes, from 11:40 a.m. to 8 p.m., or from sunrise to sunset, to mark 500 days since the hostages were taken to Gaza by terrorists.

With 73 hostages left in captivity in Gaza, families will gather at the Hostages’ Families camp on Jerusalem’s Azza Street before marching to the Knesset, where Knesset committees will pause at 11:39 a.m. for the official start of the fast.

“As much as it is critical to keep pressure on our leaders to keep this deal moving forward, it is just as critical that the hostages’ families feel supported and know that they are not alone,” says Abbey Onn, whose cousin, Ofer Calderon, was recently released from Hamas captivity. “Fasting for 500 minutes is the least I can do to show solidarity with the hell the hostages and their families have been experiencing these last 500 days.”

A demonstration in support of the hostages will be held at the Knesset at 2 p.m., with a main gathering taking place at Tel Aviv’s Hostages Square at 8 p.m., when the fast ends.