Israelis demand Knesset members to press for hostage swap with Hamas

JERUSALEM

Families of Israeli hostages held in the Gaza Strip made a plea on Monday for a prisoner exchange deal with Hamas during a meeting of the Knesset (Israel’s parliament).

According to Israeli estimates, some 128 Israelis are currently held captive in Gaza, while Israel detains approximately 9,500 Palestinians.

During a Knesset committee meeting, families of hostages expressed their frustration at lawmakers for their failure to secure a prisoner exchange deal with Hamas, The Times of Israel newspaper reported.

“Did you eat? Did you drink? Did you relax? Did you put your kids to sleep? Did you bring your kids to school?” Mor Shoham, whose brother Tal is among Israeli hostages in Gaza, addressed Knesset members.

“These are very basic activities that my brother hasn’t been able to do for eight months. And I don’t know how to speak calmly and I don’t know how to speak quietly. I’m fed up,” he said.

Shoham vowed to “pursue” Israeli lawmakers if his brother was harmed in captivity.

“If something happens to my brother I will pursue, day by day, each and every one of you. And I’m not afraid to say that,” he warned. “My brother is suffering… every day.”

Families of hostages have staged several protests in recent weeks to demand a swap deal with Hamas, which demands an end to Israel’s war on Gaza in return for any hostage exchange with Tel Aviv.

Israel continued its brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip despite a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire in the enclave.

More than 35,400 Palestinians have since been killed, the vast majority of whom have been women and children, and over 79,500 others injured since last October following a Hamas attack.

More than seven months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water, and medicine.

Israel stands accused of “genocide” at the International Court of Justice, which has ordered Tel Aviv to ensure its forces do not commit acts of genocide and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.

*Writing by Mohammad Sio