Israelis call on Trump to end Gaza war

Protesters packed a public square outside the military headquarters, waving Israeli flags and holding placards with images of the hostages. Some carried signs, including one that read: ‘Trump’s legacy crumbles as the Gaza war persists’.

Another said: “PRESIDENT TRUMP, SAVE THE HOSTAGES NOW!”

“We think that Trump is the only man in the world who has authority over Bibi, that can force Bibi to do this,” said Tel Aviv resident Boaz, 40, referring to the Israeli prime minister.

There is growing despair among many Israelis at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who has ordered the military to capture a major urban centre where hostages may be held.

Families of the hostages and their supporters fear the assault on Gaza City could endanger their loved ones, a concern the military leadership shares, according to Israeli officials.

Orna Neutra, the mother of an Israeli soldier who was killed on October 7, 2023 and whose body is being held in Gaza by fighters, accused the government of abandoning its citizens.

“We truly hope that the United States will push both sides to finally reach a comprehensive deal that will bring them home,” she told the rally. Her son, Omer, is also American.

Tel Aviv has witnessed weekly demonstrations that have grown in size, with protesters demanding that the government secure a ceasefire with Hamas to obtain the release of hostages. Organisers said Saturday night’s rally was attended by tens of thousands. A large demonstration was also held in Jerusalem.

There are 48 hostages held in Gaza. Israeli officials believe that around 20 are still alive. Palestinian fighters abducted 251 people from Israel on October 7, 2023, when Hamas led its attack. Most of the hostages who have been released were freed after indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas.

Trump had pledged a swift end to the war in Gaza during his presidential campaign, but nearly eight months into his second term, a resolution has remained elusive. On Friday, he stated that Washington was engaged in “very deep” negotiations with Hamas.

Israeli soldiers have carried out heavy strikes on the suburbs of Gaza City, where, according to a global hunger monitor, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are facing famine. Israeli officials acknowledge that hunger exists in Gaza but deny that the territory is facing famine. On Saturday, the military warned civilians in Gaza City to leave and move to southern Gaza.

There are hundreds of thousands of Palestinians sheltering in the city that was home to around a million before the war.

The war has become unpopular among some segments of Israeli society, and opinion polls show that most Israelis want Netanyahu’s right-wing government to negotiate a permanent ceasefire with Hamas that secures the release of the hostages.

“The war has no purpose at all, except for violence and death,” stated Boaz from Tel Aviv.

Adam, 48, noted it had become obvious that soldiers were being sent to war for “nothing”.

Tens of thousands of Palestinians have been killed by the Israeli military since it lauched its retaliatory war after Hamas fighters attacked the occupied territories from Gaza in October 2023. Around 1,200 people were killed in that attack on southern Israel.

Hamas has offered to release some hostages for a temporary ceasefire, similar to terms that were discussed in July before negotiations mediated by the U.S. and Arab states collapsed.

The group, which has ruled Gaza for nearly two decades but today controls only parts of the enclave, on Saturday once again said that it would release all hostages if Israel agreed to end the war and withdraw its forces from Gaza.

Netanyahu is pushing for an all-or-nothing deal that would see all of the hostages released at once and Hamas surrendering.

The prime minister has stated that Gaza City is a Hamas stronghold and capturing it is necessary to defeat the Palestinian group, whose October 2023 attack on Israel led to the war.

Hamas has acknowledged it would no longer govern Gaza once the war ends but has refused to discuss laying down its weapons.