‘Stop bullshitting us’: Protesters block Tel Aviv highway, demand hostage deal
With negotiations stalled, US said ready to guarantee Israel can continue war against Hamas even if agreement reached with Hamas, but will only put it in writing after deal signed
Relatives of hostages and dozens of protesters blocked southbound traffic on Tel Aviv’s Ayalon Highway on Tuesday, protesting against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government and demanding a deal with Hamas to release hostages the Palestinian terror group is holding in the Gaza Strip.
The protest came as Netanyahu faces accusations of derailing negotiations mediated by the United States, Egypt and Qatar to secure the release of the hostages, who were abducted from Israel by terrorists during the devastating Hamas-led October 7 assault on the country that killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians.
A proposal being discussed envisions three stages during which Israel would halt its offensive in Gaza and Hamas would release hostages. Netanyahu has insisted on Israel maintaining the right to renew fighting after the first stage, when delicate negotiations would be held on the remaining phases. Hebrew reports Monday claimed the US is ready to guarantee that stipulation, which would overcome a major Israeli objection to reaching a deal.
On the Ayalon, a key artery through Tel Aviv, protesters blocked traffic and chanted “Netanyahu is abandoning [the hostages], Netanyahu isn’t fit [to serve].”
Demonstrators held up an English-language banner reading “Stop bullshitting us,” referencing a phrase reportedly used by US President Joe Biden in a recent call with the premier when discussing a hostage deal.
After about 15 minutes police arrived to clear the protesters and traffic began moving again.
In a statement, organizers said, “All the heads of the security establishment and the president of the United States are saying — prime minister, stop selling us bullshit.
“An entire country is sitting anxiously and awaiting a regional war,” the statement continued, referring to an expected direct Iranian attack, possibly in conjunction with Hezbollah, over the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran last week, which Iran has blamed on Israel, and the killing of a top Hezbollah commander claimed by Jerusalem.
“It is impossible to continue living in a rudderless country, it is impossible to launch another [military] campaign before [the hostages] return home,” the statement said, addressing fears that an Iranian response could ignite a regional war.
Among those at the protest were Yehud Cohen, father of hostage Nimrod Cohen, 19, and Shay Mozes, nephew of hostage Gadi Moshe Mozes, 79, the Walla outlet reported.
“We try to keep the issue of the abductees as a priority,” Cohen told Walla. “I need to have my son alive and this is the only way. The government doesn’t care, Netanyahu only cares about his personal interest.”
כעת: משפחות חטופים ופעילות מחאת הנשים להחזרת החטופות והחטופים חוסמות את איילון דרום סמוך למחלף לה גארדיה. המפגנים אוחזים בשלט מחאה עליו נכתב Stop Bullshitting Us
@N12News pic.twitter.com/NL6v1ioGFs— אור רביד | Or Ravid (@OrRavid) August 6, 2024
"מדינה לא מנוהלת": משפחות חטופים ומחאת הנשים חוסמות את איילון דרום סמוך למחלף לה גארדיה pic.twitter.com/AjDB4YvIzF
— i24NEWS (@i24NEWS_HE) August 6, 2024
Current negotiations for a deal are based on an Israeli proposal submitted on May 27, which was then publicly revealed by Biden but is vehemently opposed by Netanyahu’s far-right allies, who insist on continuing the war until Hamas is destroyed in Gaza.
The proposal envisions three stages. During the first stage, to last six weeks, Hamas would free all the women hostages, including soldiers, in addition to men over the age of 50 and ill and wounded civilians. In return, Israel would release hundreds of Palestinian security prisoners it is holding. A lull in fighting would also begin.
During that phase, indirect negotiations would start over details of the exchange that would take place in the second phase, when soldiers and remaining men would be released, also in return for Palestinian prisoners. The ceasefire is to continue during negotiations. In the second phase, Israel would withdraw from the Gaza Strip and a permanent end to hostilities would be announced. The third stage deals with Hamas releasing the remains of deceased hostages and the rebuilding of Gaza.
Several Hebrew media reports Monday said the US is willing to guarantee to Israel that it will be able to renew fighting against Hamas in Gaza after the first phase of a potential ceasefire and hostage deal, as a means to pressure Hamas into releasing all the hostages.
According to the Yedioth Ahronoth and Haaretz dailies, Washington hasn’t yet given a written guarantee, as Jerusalem has been demanding, but has agreed in principle to give one if a deal materializes.
Haaretz cited an unnamed Israeli official who said that Israel sees being able to renew the fighting as its main leverage on Hamas to ensure the terror group releases all the hostages and does not hold on to male soldiers as human shields for its leader Yihya Sinwar and other chiefs.
Hamas last month said it was dropping its demand that Israel commit upfront to ending the war but was still seeking commitments from mediators that Israel would continue to negotiate a permanent ceasefire during the first stage.
But the Monday reports said Israel wants a deal to clearly lay out that it can take up the fight against Hamas at a later stage to keep the pressure on the terror group.
Yedioth Ahronoth reported that during a meeting last week between Netanyahu and security chiefs on the hostage deal, the prime minister explained delays in reaching an agreement by saying he was waiting to receive Washington’s commitment in writing so that he could present it to the Israeli public.
Amid flaring tempers, Netanyahu reportedly shouted down his security chiefs as they pushed to reach a deal, banging on the table and telling them that they were lousy negotiators, a claim later denied by the Prime Minister’s Office.
The meeting took place after the Israeli strike in Beirut that killed Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr on Tuesday night and after the killing of Hamas Haniyeh in Tehran early Wednesday morning.
At the end of last month, Israel submitted its latest offer for the proposal. However, Netanyahu has reportedly made new demands, putting him at odds with security chiefs who say they will scupper the deal that they are urging him to accept.
In the meantime, the hostage talks have been put on hold until after Iran’s expected attack, and until Hamas can appoint a new leader to replace Haniyeh, two officials familiar with the matter told The Times of Israel Monday.
It is believed that 111 of the 251 hostages abducted by Hamas on October 7 remain in Gaza, including the bodies of 39 confirmed dead by the IDF.
Hamas released 105 civilians during a weeklong truce in late November, and four hostages were released before that. Seven hostages have been rescued by troops alive, and the bodies of 24 hostages have also been recovered, including three abductees mistakenly killed by the military as they tried to escape their captors.
One more person has been listed as missing since October 7, and their fate is still unknown. Hamas is also holding two Israeli civilians who entered the Strip in 2014 and 2015, as well as the bodies of two IDF soldiers who were killed in 2014.
