Demonstrators protest against the Israeli government and for the release of Israelis held hostage in the Gaza Strip outside Hakirya Base in Tel Aviv, Aug. 9, 2025. Photo by Miriam Alster/Flash90
Tens of thousands of Israeli citizens participated Saturday night in demonstrations against the Security Cabinet’s decision to occupy the Gaza Strip in a military takeover.
The rallies took place on the Tu B’Av, often called the Jewish Valentine’s Day. Many hostage family members used the occasion to demand that the government agree to a comprehensive deal to release all the remaining hostages.
Ilana Gritzewsky, former hostage and wife of hostage Matan Zangauker, said, “How can we celebrate love, when our loved ones are imprisoned in the dark? I’m standing here in Tel Aviv, but my heart is there in Gaza, somewhere, with Matan.”
She called on U.S. President Donald Trump to “sign the deal to get everyone out and end the war now.”
Sharon Cunio Aloni, wife of hostage David Cunio, and who also returned from captivity in the first hostage-ceasefire deal in November 2023, described the difficulty of her situation.
“673 days in which I didn’t really sleep, I didn’t really eat, I didn’t really live. 673 days in which I managed to hear my daughter, Yuli, asked me if her father doesn’t love her anymore because he hasn’t returned from Gaza yet.”
As part of the demonstrations, some protesters blocked the Ayalon Highway, which runs through Tel Aviv, and is one of Israel’s busiest roads. The highway was opened again a couple of hours later, after police managed to clear the highway of protesters.
Einav Zangauker, mother of hostage Matan Zangauker, spoke at a rally near the Kirya military headquarters in Tel Aviv. “We are done waiting for miracles, we are done begging the government. We are done hoping that the deal will land from above. It will come from us, from the public. It will come from each and every one of you, the salvation of Matan and all 50 kidnapped men and the kidnapped women will come from us.”
She urged the public to take action , appearing to call for a nationwide strike, as the Hostages and Missing Families Forum had requested. “The state must be stopped, we cannot let the government occupy the Strip, sacrifice the kidnapped people and our soldiers. We must put an end to the cycle of bereavement; it will come from you. It will come from us.”
The Forum had requested a general strike by Israel’s national labor union, Histadrut, to prevent the government from seizing the Gaza Strip , including conducting military operations in Gaza City.
However, Histadrut Chairman Arnon Bar David, who agreed to meet with the hostage families, is not expected to agree to their demand for a general strike aimed at shutting down the Israeli economy.
Last year, following the murder of six hostages by Hamas, the Forum also requested a general strike, which the Labor Court rejected, saying the union is supposed to deal with wages and labor relations, and not with political matters.
On Saturday night, Hamas captivity survivor Eliyah Cohen spoke at the rally in Hostage Square, telling the crowds, “We were all shocked to see the video of Rom and Evyatar. The writing is on the wall.”
“I don’t want to wake up to another ‘permitted for publication’ and certainly not to lose my brothers who are still there,” Cohen said regarding IDF reports on soldier and hostage deaths, which often begin with the phrase “permitted for publication” in Hebrew media.
“I know what it’s like to return in a partial deal,” Cohen continued. “I live with feelings of guilt every day, and I don’t wish for anyone to feel what it’s like to leave a brother behind. One last request – bring a deal that will bring everyone in and don’t give up on them, on anyone – just like you didn’t give up on me.”
