Thousands of demonstrators are gathered in Jerusalem’s Paris Square, outside Netanyahu’s official residence, to call for a hostage deal.
The protest, which takes place on a weekly basis, is significantly larger tonight due to thousands of marchers who arrived in the city a few hours ago.
The mothers of hostages Avinatan Or and Romi Gonen, whom Hamas kidnapped from the Supernova music festival, are giving joint speeches onstage.
The two mothers come from starkly different backgrounds but say that despite their religious and political differences, they are united in their desire to bring their children back home.
“Everyone here is the most precise, unique creation of God… and God can take a look at us, every one of us is his mirror which together create an amazing harmony,” says Ditza Or, alluding to Chabad philosophy in her speech on unity.
“Ditza and I may not agree on strategy, what’s more right to do, but we always agree on the strength we have united, on the fact that every one of us is a dot of light,” says Meirav Gonen.
Organizers are now leading protesters in counting to 148, the number of days that have passed with Israeli hostages in Hamas captivity.
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