Mass protests in Israel unlike any before
The anti-government demonstrations in Israel are markedly different than previous protests throughout the war, according to Ori Goldberg, a political commentator.
“The people who have been demonstrating for the hostages up until now … [were] generally perceived to be somewhat similar to the people who had been protesting against Netanyahu for a year before the war broke out, which means demonstrations were classified as political,” Goldberg told Al Jazeera.
That has shifted within the last 24 hours because Israel’s two stated goals of the war – returning the captives and destroying Hamas – no longer seem complementary to Israeli public opinion, he added.
Israeli citizens have realised the six captives’ deaths could have been avoided and the Israeli military “is running around like a headless chicken”, Goldberg said.
“The understanding that has seeped into the public consciousness … [is that] the military pressure our prime minister was so proud of, not only is it not assisting in the return of the hostages, it’s killing them.”
Israeli outcry over captive deaths: ‘This is an earthquake’
Despite rising criticism, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to continue the fighting until Hamas is destroyed. The Israeli army, noting the difficulty of rescue operations, has acknowledged a ceasefire deal is the only way to bring home large numbers of captives safely.
Some analysts said the public outcry over the six hostages who died could signal a new level of political pressure on Netanyahu.
“I think this is an earthquake. This isn’t just one more step in the war,” said Nomi Bar-Yaacov, associate fellow in the International Security Program at Chatham House, shortly before Sunday’s mass protests.
Critics have accused the prime minister of putting his personal interests over those held in Gaza. The war’s end likely will lead to an investigation into his government’s failures in the October 7 attacks, the government’s collapse, and early elections.
Huge Israel protests – ‘Netanyahu can handle it’
Gideon Levy, a columnist with Israel’s Haaretz newspaper, expressed scepticism that the massive protests in Israel will finally force Prime Minister Netanyahu’s government into a ceasefire deal to return the captives held in Gaza.
“No, it will not be enough – unless it’s the beginning of something big – because if it will all be concluded tomorrow Netanyahu can handle it. Don’t forget most of those protesting are not from the political base of Netanyahu,” Levy told Al Jazeera.
He noted the far-right parties in the government “could not care less about the hostages”.
