"End This": Thousands Rally In Israel On 600th Day Of War
Thousands gathered in Tel Aviv on Wednesday to support hostages still held in Gaza on the 600th day since the war began, urging a ceasefire to secure their release.
Signs reading "The people with the hostages" were held aloft the packed crowd in the plaza dubbed Hostages Square after darkness fell over the Israeli coastal city.
The meeting point has held regular rallies for the release of hostages since they were seized during Hamas's attack on Israel that triggered the war on October 7, 2023.
"It's been more than 100 days since I was forced to leave my brother behind. As long as Eitan and the other hostages are not back, I am still in captivity," said Yair Horn, who was freed in February but whose brother is still held in Gaza.
"You brought me home, do it again, end this war and bring back the 58 hostages," he added in a plea to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose government ended the truce in mid-March and has escalated the military offensive in Gaza vowing to destroy Hamas and free the hostages.
Hundreds of people gathered at intersections and on the main highway running through Tel Aviv at 6:29 am, the exact time the unprecedented October 7 attack began.
Signs bearing the number 600 were placed along roads and demonstrations were held throughout the day.
- 'Everything to bring us back' -
Several hundred people gathered at kibbutz Nir Oz in southern Israel, where nearly a quarter of residents were killed or taken hostage.
"During the first days of captivity, I was convinced that (the army) and the State of Israel would do everything to bring us back in a few hours, at most a few days," said Karina Engel-Bart, whose husband was killed in the Hamas attack and is still in Gaza.
"But I was wrong... there are still 58 of them in Gaza and they must be released now," she added.
Engel-Bart was herself held hostage with her two daughters before all three were released during the first truce in the war at the end of November 2023.
Situated near the border with Gaza, Nir Oz still has 14 of its residents held in the Palestinian territory, three of whom are believed to be alive.
On the lawn of the kibbutz, former hostages, relatives of captives and residents mingled with people from across the country.
While there were no placards, the yellow ribbons now associated with the hostages were seen on T-shirts and on the stage where speakers took turns addressing the crowd.
Out of 251 hostages seized during the Hamas attack, 57 remain in Gaza including 34 the Israeli military says are dead. Hamas also holds the body of a soldier taken captive in a 2014 war.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hindu
13 minutes ago
- The Hindu
Two Israeli rights groups say their country is committing genocide in Gaza
Two prominent Israeli rights groups on Monday (July 28, 2025) said their country is committing genocide in Gaza, the first time that local Jewish-led organizations have made such accusations against Israel during nearly 22 months of war. The claims by B'Tselem and Physicians for Human Rights-Israel add to an explosive debate over whether Israel's military offensive in Gaza — launched in response to Hamas' deadly October 7, 2023, attack — amounts to genocide. The Palestinians, their supporters and international human rights groups make that claim, and the International Court of Justice is hearing a genocide case filed by South Africa against Israel. But in Israel, founded in the wake of the Holocaust, even the government's strongest critics have largely refrained from making such accusations. That's because of the deep sensitivities and strong memories of the Nazi genocide of Europe's Jews, and because many in Israel view the war in Gaza as a justified response to the deadliest attack in the country's history and not an attempt at extermination. The rights groups, while prominent and respected internationally, are considered in Israel to be on the political fringe, and their views are not representative of the vast majority of Israelis. But having the allegation of genocide come from Israeli voices shatters a taboo in a society that has been reticent to criticize Israel's conduct in Gaza. Guy Shalev, director of Physicians for Human Rights-Israel, said the Jewish-Israeli public often dismisses accusations of genocide as antisemitic or biased against Israel. 'Perhaps human rights groups based in Israel, and coming to this conclusion, is a way to confront that accusation and get people to acknowledge the reality,' he said. Israel asserts that it is fighting an existential war and abides by international law. It has rejected genocide allegations as antisemitic. It is challenging such allegations at the International Court of Justice, and it has rejected the International Criminal Court's allegations that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant committed war crimes in Gaza. Both face international arrest warrants. On October 13, 2023, the Israeli military ordered the evacuation of 22 hospitals in #Gaza City and the northern Gaza Strip. That day marked the start of an unprecedented assault on Gaza's health system. - Over the following 22 months, Israel systematically targeted Gaza's… — Physicians for Human Rights Israel (PHRI) (@PHRIsrael) July 28, 2025 Israel's government on Monday didn't immediately comment on the reports by B'Tselem and PHRI. Israeli officials largely blame civilian deaths in Gaza on Hamas, saying it uses civilians as shields by embedding militants in residential areas. The rights groups, in separate reports released jointly, said Israel's policies in Gaza, statements by senior officials about its goals there and the systematic dismantling of the territory's health system contributed to their conclusion of genocide. Their claims echoed those of previous reports from international rights groups like Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International. Like other rights groups, B'Tselem and Physicians for Human Rights-Israel have not been allowed into Gaza during the war. Their reports are based on testimonies, documents, eyewitnesses and consultations with legal experts. Hamas' attack on Israel that started the war sparked a shift in the country's policy toward Palestinians in Gaza from 'repression and control to destruction and annihilation,' B'Tselem said. The group has long been outspoken about Israel's treatment of Palestinians. It halted cooperation with the military nearly a decade ago, saying the army's investigations into wrongdoing weren't serious, and it has accused Israel of being an apartheid state. The PHRI report was a detailed, legal-medical analysis focusing on what it called the step-by-step dismantling of Gaza's health and life-sustaining systems including electricity, clean water and access to food. Its report says Israel has committed three of the acts of genocide defined by international law, including 'deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part.' The Israeli rights groups said repeated statements by Israeli officials and the military endorsing the total destruction, starvation and permanent displacement of Palestinians in Gaza, combined with policies on the ground, have demonstrated that Israel is intentionally trying to destroy Palestinian society. The term 'genocide' strikes a chord in Israel, where Israelis grow up learning about the Holocaust and hearing survivors' harrowing stories, while promising it would never happen again. The 1948 Convention of the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide was drawn up in the aftermath of World War II and the murder by Nazi Germany of 6 million Jews. It defines genocide as acts 'committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group.' 'As the grandson of a Holocaust survivor, it's very painful for me to be reaching this conclusion,' said Shalev from PHRI. But after growing up in a society where the Holocaust was so important, it demands some kind of responsibility, he said. Until now, Israeli criticism of the war in Gaza has been focused on Netanyahu and whether his wartime decision-making has been politically motivated and delayed the return of hostages — 50 of them still in Gaza. Broader scrutiny of Israel's conduct in Gaza has been limited for multiple reasons. Despite the vast destruction and death in the territory and Israel's growing international isolation, most Israelis have believed for much of the war in its righteousness. And with most Jewish Israelis serving in the army, it's difficult for most people to fathom that their relatives in uniform could be carrying out genocide. Some soldiers, however, have refused to fight in the war. Jeffrey Herf, a historian who has published much on antisemitism, said the allegation of genocide doesn't take into account that there is a war between two parties. He said it ignores Hamas as a military force and Israel's right to defend itself. After groups like B'Tselem in recent years accused Israel of apartheid, more mainstream voices in Israel also picked up the claim, although in less sweeping ways. Israeli historian Tom Segev said he's not sure the new reports and their allegations will have an impact on the public. 'The major thing for Israelis is a question of the hostages, not necessarily the fate of the population in Gaza,' he said. But he said what's happening in Gaza is undermining the ideological and moral justification for the existence of Israel. The rights groups said the international community hasn't done enough to protect Palestinians and are calling on the world, including Israelis who have stayed silent, to speak up. 'We have an obligation to do everything we can to speak the truth about this, to stand by the victims,' said Sarit Michaeli, the international director for B'Tselem.
Mint
13 minutes ago
- Mint
Trump announces ‘food centres' in Gaza amid worsening hunger crisis, says ‘you can't fake starvation'
US President Donald Trump said on Monday (July 28) the United States will establish 'food centres' across Gaza to tackle the worsening hunger crisis in the war-torn Palestinian territory. Speaking during his visit to Scotland, where he met UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Trump stressed the urgency of delivering aid directly to civilians. 'We're going to set up food centres where the people can walk in – and no boundaries. We're not going to have fences,' Trump told reporters at the Trump Turnberry golf resort. Trump, visibly moved by images from Gaza, described the humanitarian situation as dire, particularly for children. 'I mean, some of those kids – that's real starvation stuff,' he said. 'You can't fake that. They have to get food and safety right now.' Trump also called on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to do more to facilitate aid and end the conflict. 'Israel has a lot of responsibility... I think Israel can do a lot,' he said. 'You have to end it,' he added, referring directly to the ongoing war. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer echoed Trump's sentiments, calling the Gaza crisis a humanitarian catastrophe and criticising the limitations on aid deliveries. 'It's a humanitarian crisis, right? It's an absolute catastrophe,' Starmer said. 'I think people in Britain are revolted at seeing what they're seeing on their screen.' Downing Street has reportedly urged the US to pressure Israel to allow greater humanitarian access, amid what it called 'unspeakable suffering and starvation.' Britain, France, and Germany have all criticised Israel for restricting essential aid into Gaza. Though a daily pause in military activity between 10am and 8pm has been announced to facilitate aid deliveries, relief agencies say the response still falls short. The World Food Programme (WFP) said only 60 trucks of aid were able to enter Gaza recently—well below the 100-truck daily target. 'Sixty is definitely not enough,' said Samer AbdelJaber, WFP's Regional Director. 'Almost 470,000 people are facing famine-like conditions. We need something continuous and scalable.' Trump insisted that the immediate focus must be on getting food to civilians in need, noting that the US is increasing both financial and material aid. 'We're giving a lot of money and a lot of food, and other nations are now stepping up. It's a mess. They have to get food and safety right now,' he said.
Time of India
15 minutes ago
- Time of India
Britain's prime minister presses Trump on 'desperate' situation in Gaza during meeting in Scotland
Live Events (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel US President Trump met on Monday at one of his Scottish golf courses with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer , who pressed him on the U.S. taking a larger role in helping quell a growing food crisis in Gaza amid Israel's ongoing war with Hamas in the and his wife, Victoria, arrived at Trump's Turnberry course on the southern coast, and the Republican president spent several minutes chatting with them and proudly pointing out key aspects of the property. But the prime minister didn't wait until they were inside to insist that Gaza would be a key topic in their meeting, calling what's occurring there "a desperate situation."Trump expressed concern about the humanitarian situation and urged Israel's leader to take action as images of emaciated children have was asked if he agreed with Netanyahu's remarks about concerns of mass starvation in Gaza being overstated and replied, "I don't know. I mean, based on television, I would say not particularly because those children look very hungry."Starmer was far more forceful: "I think people in Britain are revolted at seeing what they are seeing on their screens."Trump said Israel "has a lot of responsibility" for what's happening but said the country is hampered by considerations of the remaining hostages it wants to see kept alive and freed."I think Israel can do a lot," Trump said, without offering more has multiple Scottish golf courses The prime minister is meeting with Trump at Turnberry but also plans to travel north, to outside Aberdeen, where the president's family has a second golf course and is holding a ribbon-cutting for a third one on events allow Trump to try and make good on a post from his first term in 2019, when he wrote of his Turnberry property, "Very proud of perhaps the greatest golf course anywhere in the world. Also, furthers U.K. relationship!"Starmer is famously not a golfer, but toggling between Trump's Scottish courses shows the outsized influence the president puts on properties bearing his name - and on golf's ability to shape Monday's talks also covered far more serious prime minister wants Washington's help in convincing Israel to allow more aid into Gaza and attempting to end what Downing Street called "the unspeakable suffering and starvation" while pushing for a along with France and Germany, has criticized Israel for "withholding essential humanitarian assistance" as hunger spreads in Gaza. Over the weekend, Starmer said Britain will take part in efforts led by Jordan to airdrop aid after Israel temporarily eased British Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds acknowledged Monday that only the U.S. has "the leverage" to make a real difference in the conflict. Trump spoke before the meeting with Starmer about wanting to help starving children, but he has also repeatedly complained about the U.S. not getting enough credit for organizing past food aid into Gaza."Nobody said even thank you," he said. "Somebody should say thank you."Palestinian state questions and Ukraine also being discussed Starmer is under pressure from his Labour Party lawmakers to follow France in recognizing a Palestinian state, a move both Israel and the U.S. have condemned. The British leader says the U.K. supports statehood for the Palestinians but it must be "part of a wider plan" for a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestinian however, said Monday of Starmer doing so, "I don't mind him taking a position."Also on Monday's agenda are efforts to promote a possible peace deal to end fighting in Russia's war with Ukraine, particularly trying to force Russian President Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table within a 50-day window Trump set earlier this said before the meeting with Starmer that he'd work to reduce the "50 days to a lesser number" and urged Russia to agree to a in the past sharply criticized Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for also failing to express enough public gratitude toward U.S. support for his country, taking a similar tack he's now adopting when it comes to aid for Gaza. The president, though, has shifted away from that tone and more sharply criticized Putin and Russia in recent new golf course near Aberdeen opens to the public on Aug. 13 and tee times are already for sale - with the course betting that a presidential visit can help boost sales. Protesters have planned a demonstration in Balmedie, near Trump's existing Aberdeen golf course. That follows protests across Scotland on Saturday decrying the president's visit as he was out past trade agreements While China initially responded to Trump's tariff threats by retaliating with high import taxes of its own on U.S. goods, it has since begun negotiating to ease trade tensions. Starmer and his country have taken a far softer gone out of his way to work with Trump, flattering the president repeatedly during a February visit to the White House , and teaming up to announce a joint trade framework on tariffs for some key products in and Trump then signed a trade agreement during the G7 summit in Canada that freed the U.K.'s aerospace sector from U.S. tariffs and used quotas to reduce them on auto-related industries from 25% to 10% while increasing the amount of U.S. beef it pledged to import."The U.K. is very well-protected. You know why? Because I like them - that's their ultimate protection," Trump said of U.S. tariff policy during the with Starmer follow a Trump meeting Sunday with European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen at his Turnberry course. They announced a trade framework that will put 15% tariffs on most goods from both countries, though many major details remain president has for months railed against yawning U.S. trade deficits around the globe and sees tariffs as a way to try and close them in a hurry. But the U.S. ran an $11.4 billion trade surplus with Britain last year, meaning it exported more to the U.K. than it imported. Census Bureau figures this year indicate that the surplus could are still lingering U.S.-Britain trade issues that need fine-tuning. The deal framework from May said British steel would enter the U.S. duty-free, but it continues to face a 25% levy.U.K. Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said Monday that "negotiations have been going on on a daily basis" and "there's a few issues to push a little bit further today," though he downplayed expectations of a leader of Scotland, meanwhile, has urged Trump to lift the current 10% tariff on Scotch whisky. First Minister John Swinney said the spirit's "uniqueness" justified an exemption.
