The families of the Israelites in Gaza criticize Israel’s Prime Minister for just prioritizing the destruction of Hamas over hostage release. And accuse Netanyahu of endangering the lives of their families
In Telavive, a group of family members of Israeli hostages in Gaza manifested in front of Kirya’s military headquarters, at a time of tension and reflects pain and frustration in the face of lack of progress in liberation of hostages. The wave of pressure on the government of Benjamin Netanyahu intensifies, with fierce accusations that its priority is not in liberation but in the destruction of Hamas.
This is what Yehuda Cohen says, father of soldier Nimrod Cohen, one of the hostages. Do not hide his despair, Yehuda: “After the explosion of the liberation agreement and ceasefire, Netanyahu is now exploding with hostages in Gaza,” he said in a loaded tone. “Netanyahu is killing the hostages and destroying the country.”
The statement of the father of soldier Nimrod Cohen reflects the climate of despair among families who, when they see negotiations to fail, feel that the Israeli government has moved away from the responsibility of guaranteeing the return of the loved ones.
The pressure, not only emotional but also political, begins to transform itself, and is not today, into a wave of protests. Today, in Kirya, to protesters around him, Yehuda Cohen left an appeal: “Go to the streets, that’s an emergency.”
Also in the protest in Telavive, Yifat Calderon, cousin of the liberated Hosting Host Calderon, once again accused the Israeli Prime Minister of manipulating international public opinion, particularly in the United States. Therefore, he spoke directly to President Donald Trump: “Don’t fall into the Netanyahu maneuvers.”
Yifat Calderon spared no words and accused the Israeli government of locking a “misleading campaign” with the US administration, only and only in order to “hide the failure in negotiations” that “could have saved lives.”
Yehuda Cohen and Yifat Calderon are just two examples – in many and repeated – from family members who say they feel more and more at the mercy of a more distant peace process. The urgency of finding a ready, effective and humanitarian response becomes a priority for them. Which for Netanyahu will not be.
