Families of hostages being held by Hamas
are protesting across Israel a day after
double Israeli strikes hit a hospital in
Gaza. The protesters are demonstrating
at road junctions across Israel, calling
on Donald Trump to help finalize a Gaza
ceasefire deal that would include the
return of the hostages. All this comes
amidst international condemnation of the
Israeli attack on Nassau Hospital in
southern Gaza that killed at least 20
people. Five journalists were amongst
those killed by what's known as a double
tap bombing. Two strikes in quick
succession on the same target. The
Israeli military says it's conducting an
investigation. Israel's banned
international journalists from entering
the Garta strip independently since the
start of the war. Our Middle East
correspondent Yolan Nell has more.
>> We won't give up. Chant hostage families
and their supporters.
They began another day of disruption.
burning tires and blocking main roads
during the morning rush hour.
>> They urgently want Israel's government
to agree to a ceasefire deal to get back
50 hostages still held by Hamas in Gaza,
20 of whom are believed to be alive.
>> We the people demand you prioritize
the hostages,
go back to the negotiation table.
There's a good deal on the table. It's
something we could work with. It's
something we could get a deal done to
bring all the hostages back.
>> But so far, public pressure hasn't
swayed Israel's prime minister with his
security cabinet set to discuss the Gaza
war. Local reports say that Israeli
ministers won't consider the new
proposal from regional mediators for a
60-day truce and the return of some of
the hostages. Hamas has agreed to that,
but Israel now says that it will only
accept a full ceasefire deal to bring
back all of the hostages and end the war
on its terms.
And Israel's military has continued to
pound Gaza. This was the aftermath of
another deadly strike after the army was
told to conquer all of Gaza city to
defeat Hamas.
There are no militants here. Children
and women got killed in their sleep and
we recovered them in pieces.
>> Meanwhile, the UN says that an Israeli
inquiry into yesterday's strikes at a
hospital in southern Gaza must yield
results.
Five journalists were among at least 20
people killed. The Israeli PM called it
a tragic mishap.
President Trump said he was not happy
and predicted the Gaza fighting would
soon end. I think within the next two to
three weeks, you're going to have pretty
good conclusive uh a conclusive ending.
>> But he's made similar claims before. And
for now, the protests in Israel continue
with a growing sense of desperation.
>> Yolandell, BBC News, Jerusalem.
American Israeli activist Gil Dickman is
one of those taking part in today's
demonstrations. His cousin Carmel Gat
was taken as a hostage into Gaza and was
subsequently murdered. He told us more
about his own family's experience.
My cousin Carmel Gat was kidnapped from
her parents house in Kibut Bay on
October 7th. She survived for 328
days alongside Hersh Poland, Alex
Lubanovi
and many others. and she was killed,
executed on um at the end of August 2024
just because the IDF forces were
approaching the um the the guards that
guarded her, the capttors decided that
they want to execute her and all the
other hostages and she was killed.
>> What do you now want the Netanyahu
government to do?
Well, just what you're seeing right now
when Israeli protesters are in the
streets is that Israel wants this war to
end and for all the hostages to come
home. The people of Israel, most of the
Israelis, most of Netanyahu's voters,
according to polls that were conducted
in the last few days, are saying to
Netanyahu, "It's time to end this war."
What we're seeing in Gaza right now is
not Israel's war. It's Netanyahu's war
and the suffering that we're seeing on
both sides of the border is preventable.
We have to put an end to this. There is
an offer on the table. There is a deal
on the table to put an end to this war.
And this is what we're demanding as
Israelis, as innocent civilians, as
victims of this horrible, horrible
massacre that occurred on October 7th.
We're saying enough is enough.
And from your own family's awful
experience,
what do you think the risks are now to
those hostages who are still alive being
held in Gaza if the Netanyahu government
does continue with the military action
that it is talking about? Well, exactly
a year ago, Carmel was held in Rafak.
And we were saying again and again,
don't get into Rafa because you're going
to create enormous destruction there and
risk the lives of the hostages. If the
actual goal of the war is to rescue
hostages and get them out, why would you
risk their lives? And Netanyahu decided
to do it anyway and Carmel was murdered.
We're now facing the occupation of Gaza
City, the or even the entire Gaza Strip.
We're worried that the same thing is
going to happen again, word for word,
that the IDF is going to get into Gaza
City, that hostages that are there will
be executed by their captors and then we
will lose them forever. We see that the
IDF conquers and occupies parts of the
Gaza Strip again and again and again.
But if you lose a hostage, you you do it
only one time and you then lose them
forever. This is what we're saying to
our government. If you really care about
the hostages, if you really care about
the lives of the Israeli people and the
people of the region, the way to do it
would be to stop this war, to end this
suffering and to save lives.
>> Gil Dickman speaking to me earlier. His
cousin Carmel Gat was taken hostage and
later killed.