Crowds gather in Tel Aviv to demand ceasefire and hostage release deal 300 days after Hamas attack

Hostages’ families were joined by a sea of supporters holding images of their loved ones at Hostages Square as they urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to bring them home, the rallying cry of the campaign to support the captives, which keeps a ticker of how long their kidnap ordeal has lasted prominently on its homepage.

“Benjamin Netanyahu, I expected, hoped, and prayed, but time and again, you fail to do what you should have done 300 days ago: stop everything and focus on one thing - bringing everyone back immediately!” said Nissan Kalderon, brother of hostage Ofer Kalderon.

At least 1,200 people were killed and more than 250 others abducted to Gaza in Hamas’ October 7 assault, according to Israeli authorities.

Israel’s military response in the strip has killed nearly 40,000 Palestinians and injured over 90,000, according to Gaza’s Ministry of Health. As of early July, nearly 2 million people had been displaced in Gaza – almost the entire population, according to UN figures.

“Brief window”: There are 111 hostages still in Gaza, including 39 believed to be dead, according to data from Netanyahu’s office. Many families have repeatedly slammed the prime minister for failing to secure their release.

Anat Angrest, mother of hostage Matan Angrest, cited “consensus among all security agencies” that there is only “a brief window of opportunity for a life-saving deal.”

“Right now, as we speak, dozens of hostages are being tortured, dozens have already been murdered, and information about their burial sites is vanishing,” she said.

Months of negotiations on a deal to end the war in Gaza and free the remaining Israeli hostages had already hit repeated roadblocks before Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh, a key player in the talks, was killed on Tuesday night. Iran and Hamas have blamed the assassination on Israel, which has neither confirmed nor denied involvement in his killing. 

-CNN