University students form human chain in march to Prime Minister’s Office for hostage deal

Dozens of Hebrew University students are demanding a hostage deal in a protest outside the Prime Minister’s Office in Jerusalem.

The students formed a human chain and marched from the entrance of the university’s Givat Ram campus to Kaplan Street.

Shay Dickmann, the cousin of Hamas-held hostage Carmel Gat, addresses the crowd before they set out.

“Now there is a chance that all the hostages will once again be with us. There is a deal on the table, a deal that our own government presented,” she said.

Sasha Ariev, the sister of Hamas captive Karina Ariev, also joins the demonstration.

“We have come to the closest point we’ve ever been at [to a deal],” she says while urging the government to sign off on a deal.

Student demonstrations are also being held in Tel Aviv and Haifa.

“The semester ended, we are supposed to be out for summer vacation but for the hostages there is no freedom, they’re not out for summer vacation, they are still in Gaza,” says Ella Lotan, a Hebrew University student and one of the demonstration organizers.

According to Lotan, students at Tel Aviv University blocked the entrance to their campus this morning.