Shouts of “shame” at meetings
Netanyahu clashes with hostage relatives
December 5th, 2023, 6:52 p.m
The relatives of hostages have had particularly terrible weeks. There are repeated allegations that the Israeli government is not doing enough to bring back people who are in the clutches of Hamas. Anger is erupting towards Prime Minister Netanyahu.
According to media reports, harsh verbal exchanges broke out at a meeting between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and relatives of Israeli Hamas hostages. As the Israeli newspaper Haaretz and the TV channel N12 reported, Netanyahu said when meeting the relatives: “At the moment there is no way to bring everyone back. Can anyone imagine that we would reject it if that were an option were?” This statement sparked outrage among relatives.
The meeting with Netanyahu and his war cabinet was reportedly attended by several hostages who had already been released and spoke of the horrors they had experienced during their captivity in the Gaza Strip. The daughter of a hostage abducted to the coastal strip by the Islamist Hamas said that the hostages were living on borrowed time and emphasized that their return to Israel should have a higher priority than the ongoing war against the terrorist organization Hamas.
Netanyahu, on the other hand, read his remarks from a paper and did not allow any questions to be asked, which is said to have upset those present. The discussion then became more and more heated and shouts of “shame” could also be heard.
The hostage relatives have been demanding another meeting with Netanyahu for some time, saying they have felt ignored since the end of the ceasefire. Around 240 people were abducted to the Gaza Strip in the unprecedented terrorist attack by Hamas and other extremist groups on Israel on October 7th. Israel believes that 137 hostages are still being held there. Recently, 105 hostages were released in exchange for 240 Palestinian prisoners.