Thousands protest in Israel after hostage deaths

Thousands of protesters took to the streets in Israel after the military recovered the bodies of six hostages over the weekend.

Tens of thousands of protesters poured into the streets across Israel on Sunday night to demand Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reach a cease-fire with militant group Hamas, The Associated Press reported. The protests came hours after the Israeli military said it recovered the bodies of six hostages, including one Israeli American.

Many protesters were chanting, “Now! Now!,” to demand a cease-fire, according to AP.

The Israeli Health Ministry said the autopsies found the hostages were shot at close range and died Thursday or Friday, according to the AP, which also reported three of the six hostages found dead were apparently scheduled to be released in the first phase of a cease-fire deal that was discussed in July.

Thousands of people gathered outside Netanyahu’s office in Jerusalem, while the relatives of the hostages in Tel Aviv marched with coffins to mark the death toll, the AP reported. CNN reported Sunday that Israeli police said they arrested 29 people during mass protests in Tel Aviv.

Netanyahu has repeatedly vowed to eliminate Hamas since the militant group attacked Israel on Oct. 7. The attack left more than 1,100 people dead, and approximately 250 people were taken as hostages into Gaza.

The U.S. and its partners in the region have been working to get a cease-fire deal between Hamas and Israel, but there has been no concrete agreement yet. In a statement about the hostage deaths, Netanyahu said Hamas was refusing its proposals.

“In recent days, as Israel has been holding intensive negotiations with the mediator in a supreme effort to reach a deal, Hamas is continuing to steadfastly refuse all proposals. Even worse, at the exact same time, it murdered six of our hostages,” he said.

“Whoever murders hostages – does not want a deal,” he added.

Israel’s largest trade union, the Histadrut, also called for a general strike to take place Monday to call for a cease-fire as protesters took to the streets in the wake of the hostage deaths.

The Associated Press contributed.