The families of Hamas hostages gathered Thursday evening in Tel Aviv, in front of the Ministry of Defense, to express their anger and question the government’s management.
For almost three weeks, relatives of people held by Hamas in Gaza have been hoping for their return. Their wait is tinged with anger: Thursday, October 26 in the evening, these families gathered within the “Forum for the Families of Hostages and Missing” raised their voice against the government. On the giant screen installed in Tel Aviv, the message “Bring Them Home” was repeated dozens of times. A mother posted in front of this screen screams her anger: “20 days, it’s been 20 days, 20 days without knowing how my daughter is doing, if she’s breathing, 20 days of being asked to be patient, she says. But enough is enough, our patience is over.”
“Today, we want them back”, chant the gathered families. “What do you do all day?” implores a father while addressing the government. “I ask only one thing: stand up, put yourself in my place and take responsibility”he begs.
Families feel abandoned
All these relatives of the kidnapped people say the same thing: no information, absent authorities, a feeling of abandonment and the need to organize themselves. They forcefully denounce the incompetence of political leaders and warn them, like this grieving mother.
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“I say to all those who govern us, whether left, right, top or bottom, all of you, when this story ends, your place will be in the dustbin of history”, she exclaims, to the applause of the crowd. The mother continues: “And the only ones who can be saved from the trial of history are those who bring the hostages home in their hands.”
“The priority should be to bring them home, not to eradicate Hamas, because that could take years. So the hostages should be with us now!”
Adi, whose best friend is held hostage by Hamasat franceinfo
Adi, whose best friend was kidnapped, also denounces the government’s priorities. “Ending Hamas is much more complicated than bringing back [les otages] at our place. This is not about politics, these are human beings! We are not objects for them to play with!”, she laments. So as not to forget the hostages, the days, hours and minutes of their captivity are played out on the giant screen deployed under the windows of the Minister of Defense, Yoav Gallant.