"Stop the war, bring the hostages home," hundreds of thousands of Israelis protest against Netanyahu

2025-08-17 23:11:13Kosova&Bota SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX
"Stop the war, bring the hostages home," hundreds of thousands of
Hundreds of thousands of Israelis protest against Netanyahu

Hundreds of thousands of Israeli citizens gathered in the evening at Hostage Square in Tel Aviv, demanding an urgent agreement for the release of hostages held by terrorist groups in Gaza and an end to the war that has rocked the region for months.

According to organizers from the Hostage Families Forum, about 500,000 people participated in the protest in Tel Aviv, while 1 million citizens protested throughout the day in more than 50 cities and towns across the country.

The protest was accompanied by emotional speeches from the parents of some of the hostages currently being held in Gaza. Ofir Braslavski, the father of Rom Braslavski, one of the Israeli hostages, said his son is suffering greatly and that the government has abandoned him for political reasons.

"My Roma has no more time. The whole country saw it, but the government chose to expand the war instead of bringing the hostages home," he said through tears.

"Stop the war, bring the hostages home," hundreds of thousands of

Yehuda Cohen, Nimrod Cohen's father, accused Prime Minister Netanyahu's government of using the hostages as a pretext for political purposes.

"My son is suffering because of the construction of settlements in Gaza. This is unacceptable," he said.

At a climax of the protest, a video was broadcast to the crowd, where former hostages released thanks to the recent ceasefire agreement made a powerful appeal to US President Donald Trump, asking for his intervention to end the war and help free the remaining hostages.

"Every new attack endangers the lives of those still there," said Sasha Trufonov.

"You can make history, bring peace and bring my little brother home," added Yair Horn, the brother of a hostage still being held in Gaza.

The protesters demanded that the Israeli government stop escalating the war and commit to a comprehensive agreement for the return of the hostages. Some of the families warned that they would not stop until the last hostage was returned home.

"If the government is unable to do this, then it should step down and make way for someone more responsible," Cohen said.


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