Ariane Ménage (correspondent in Tel Aviv) / Photo credit: ALEXI J. ROSENFELD / GETTY IMAGES EUROPE / GETTY IMAGES VIA AFP
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7:17 a.m., December 10, 2023
ֵIn Israel, anger is growing against Benyamin Netanyahu and his government. Since the Hamas attack, rallies in support of the hostages have replaced the large demonstrations on Saturday evening, but the criticism against the Israeli Prime Minister is clearly audible, as Europe 1 observed in Tel Aviv.
“Bring them home.” Several hundred people gathered once again this Saturday evening in Tel Aviv to demand the release of the hostages, held by Hamas for more than two months now. The terrorist movement, for its part, refuses to release any more Israelis until a permanent ceasefire is concluded.
“This government does not care for bereaved families but only for itself”
In the crowd, Iftar brandishes a sign with photos: that of his aunt, a released hostage, of his uncle still detained in Gaza like several of his friends. “We are constantly afraid that something will happen to them. And the more time passes, the more frightening it is,” he worries at the microphone of Europe 1. For months, they have been demonstrating every week against the government and has no confidence in the Prime Minister to manage the hostage crisis. “He must take responsibility. Who has been running the country for fifteen, even twenty years?” denounces Iftar.
Benjamin Netanyahu is increasingly criticized for the strategic flaws that led to the October 7 attack, led by Hamas. Also accused of preferring his political survival to the interests of the country. “This government does not take care of the displaced. This government does not take care of the bereaved families but only of itself,” proclaims a demonstrator, into a microphone in front of the crowd. Even if a majority of Israelis believe that we must wait before resolving the internal political crisis, the demonstrators here are calling for the suspension of the prime minister immediately, even in times of war. In the Gaza Strip, street fighting continues. The Israeli army shells the areas of Khan Younes and Rafah, near the border with Egypt.