Israeli protesters block Tel Aviv–Jerusalem highway to demand release of hostages in Gaza

Israeli protesters blocked the main highway linking Tel Aviv and Jerusalem on Wednesday evening to demand the release of captives held in the Gaza Strip.

Dozens of demonstrators, including families of Israeli hostages, shut down Highway 1 in both directions near the Anava Junction, according to the daily Yedioth Ahronoth.

"The hostages are dying," and "The Israeli government is killing the hostages" chanted the protesters during their rally.

Police later said they dispersed the protesters and reopened the road to traffic.

Israeli media also reported that hundreds of protesters climbed onto the light rail tracks on Jaffa Street in Jerusalem, after breaking through barriers and confronting police following a protest outside Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's residence.

In a video statement, Netanyahu described protesters outside his home in West Jerusalem as "fascist militias," claiming they were threatening to kill him and his family.

Tel Aviv estimates that 48 Israeli captives remain in Gaza, including 20 alive, while more than 10,800 Palestinians are held in Israeli prisons, where they face torture, starvation, and medical neglect, with many killed as a result, according to Palestinian and Israeli human rights reports.

On Aug. 18, Hamas agreed to a mediator-backed proposal for a partial cease-fire and prisoner swap in Gaza, but Israel has yet to respond, despite its terms aligning with a previous offer put forward by US envoy Steve Witkoff, which Tel Aviv had already accepted.

Instead, Netanyahu is pushing for the occupation of Gaza City under the pretext of freeing captives and defeating Hamas — a move widely doubted by opponents and former officials, with the Israeli military itself warning the operation poses a grave risk to the lives of the captives.

The Israeli army has launched a brutal military offensive on the Gaza Strip, killing more than 63,700 Palestinians in Gaza. The military campaign has devastated the enclave, which is facing famine.

Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.