Hundreds of people arrived on Monday night at Begin Road in Tel Aviv and blocked both directions to demonstrate the return of the captives.
The demonstrators were spurred by an earlier announcement concerning the deaths of four hostages. "Yoram Metzger. Chaim Perry. Amiram Cooper. Nadav Popplewell. Taken hostage alive. Abandoned by the bloodthirsty government to die. May their memory be a cry for a deal," was conveyed on behalf of the hostage's headquarters shortly before the demonstration.
Mother's plea for hostages return
During the demonstration, Einav Zangauker, the mother of the hostage Matan Zangauker, said, "I have one question tonight, why us? Why do we need to receive notification of hostage people being killed?
“From this stage, I declare that I do not intend to move from here until I hear that there is a signed deal. This government has no right to abandon the hostages to die. They do not have the mandate to decide who lives and who does not. We want them all back home, the living and the murdered."
She further added, "Today, we received unequivocal proof that as a result of the military pressure, we received them dead! I call on the Israeli government to wake up."
"We want the deal now, we want the captives home. It's time for citizens to take to the streets, not to let cars pass, to block every junction and every road,” Zangauker stated.
Ayalon Highways southbound lanes were opened for traffic on Tuesday after being blocked for approximately 40 minutes by the demonstrators advocating for the return of the hostages. The protesters cleared the road themselves, without any confrontations with the police.