Israel-Hamas War: What happened on day 331?

The bodies of hostages Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Eden Yerushalmi, Carmel Gat, Almog Sarusi, Alexander Lobanov, and Ori Danino were found in the Gaza Strip, the IDF said on Sunday morning.

The IDF retrieved the bodies of the hostages from a tunnel under the city of Rafah in Gaza.

They were likely slaughtered by Hamas shortly before the IDF got to them in Rafah.

The bodies were found only one kilometer from where Kaid Farhan al-Alkadi, age 52, from Rahat, was found last week.

Tel Aviv - Thousands blocking Begin Rd near the Begin Gate of the Kirya military HQ, demanding the government sign the hostage deal and bring everyone home, now! (credit: Tally Melamed)

Performance art in Hapil junction in Tel Aviv in calls for a deal now. (credit: Amir Yaacobi)

Protestors at the Pil Junction in Tel Aviv. (credit: Amir Yaacobi)

Tel Aviv - ''End the criminal abandonment'', coffins on display at the Begin Gate. Demanding the government sign the deal and bring everyone home. (credit: Raya Barkan)

Crowds keep arriving at the Begin Gate in Tel Aviv, demanding a deal now to release the hostages. (credit: DANOR AHARON)

Thousands on the platform at the Hashalom Station near Begin Street. (credit: Nuki Sharir)

Demonstrators protest in Jerusalem

Israelis scuffle with police as they attend a rally calling for the release of Israelis held kidnapped by Hamas terrorists in Gaza, at the entrance to Jerusalem September 1, 2024. (credit: YONATAN SINDEL/FLASH90)

Jerusalem - Protesters block the entrance to the city, demand the government sign the deal and bring everyone home. (credit: Courtesy)

Demonstrators protest across Israel

Afula - Protesters demanding the government sign the hostage release deal and bring everyone home, now! (credit: Matan Netzer)

Protestors at the Nahalal Junction calling for a deal to free the hostages now. (credit: Reuven G Sz)

A protestor at the Nahalal Junction. (credit: Reuven G Sz)

A protestor at the massive demonstration in Beer Sheba. (credit: Tanya Zion-Waldoks)

Protestors continue at thr Ra'anana Junction on Highway 4, calling for a deal now. Credit (credit: Micha Vardi )

Everyone wants the Mossad on their side when it comes to the debate over the Philadelphi Corridor.

Protesters blocked the entrance to Jerusalem Sunday evening as others marched through the streets of Tel Aviv carrying coffins, protesting the abandonment of the hostages after the IDF confirmed that the bodies of six hostages had been retrieved from Gaza.

The protesting mass has since shifted from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv, with police managing to clear the entrance to Jerusalem after more than two hours of blockages.

According to the Hostage Family Forum, three hundred thousand people have gathered in Tel Aviv in mass protest, demanding an immediate hostage deal before more hostages are killed by Hamas.

Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Eden Yerushalmi, Carmel Gat, Almog Sarusi, Alexander Lobanov, and Ori Danino were alive in captivity for nearly 11 months, before being killed in captivity soon before IDF forces reached their location, according to an IDF initial assessment, the IDF said Sunday.

Strikes were called for dozens of locations around the country Sunday night, after protesters had gathered at junctions and blocked roads around the country Sunday morning.

Protestors continue at thr Ra'anana Junction on Highway 4, calling for a deal now. Credit (credit: Micha Vardi )

Families of hostages, labor union head Arnon Bar-David, the head of the Kibbutz Movement and others were scheduled to speak at a main stage outside the IDF Kirya headquarters Sunday night, in a protest organized by the Hostage Family Forum.

The Women's Protest for the Hostages blocked the Ayalon Highway on Sunday evening, holding huge posters of hostages.  

The Histadrut chairman, Arnon Bar David, Israel's main labor organization, called for a total shutdown of the country's economy on Monday starting at 6 a.m., and Israel's airport followed shortly after. 

Israelis gathered at junctions and blocked intersections around the country Sunday morning, calling for a hostage deal after reports came out that the bodies of six hostages had been retrieved from Gaza. 

In the wake of the IDF's discovery of the bodies of six hostages in Gaza, including American citizen Hersh Goldberg-Polin, UN Sec. Gen. Guterres called for the unconditional release of hostages in Hamas captivity and an end to the war in Gaza.

"I will never forget my meeting last October with the parents of Hersh Goldberg-Polin and other hostage families," Guterres wrote on X, formerly Twitter, "Today's tragic news is a devastating reminder of the need for the unconditional release of all hostages and an end to the nightmare of war in Gaza."
 
 
 

Israelis gathered at junctions and blocked intersections around the country Sunday morning, calling for a hostage deal after reports came out that the bodies of six hostages had been retrieved from Gaza. 

Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Eden Yerushalmi, Carmel Gat, Almog Sarusi, Alexander Lobanov, and Ori Danino were alive in captivity for nearly 11 months before being killed in captivity by Hamas soon before IDF forces reached their location, according to an IDF initial assessment.

The Hostage Family Forum called on Israelis to take to the streets and demand a hostage deal now. Protests were planned for Sunday evening at dozens of locations around the country.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu canceled the government's weekly meeting scheduled for 12:00 p.m. on Sunday, following the IDF's retrieval of six bodies of hostages from Gaza on Saturday, a government spokesperson confirmed. The spokesperson did not say what the prime minister's schedule will include instead, and whether or not he will convene the National Security Cabinet.

Already on Saturday, the Prime Minister's Office announced that it had canceled his scheduled visit on Sunday morning to an elementary school in Jerusalem to mark the beginning of the new school year.

The scheduling changes came amidst public criticism over a controversial decision in the National Security Cabinet on Thursday night that the IDF will maintain a continuous presence on the Gaza-Egypt border. According to recordings from the meeting published by Channel 12 News, Netanyahu acknowledged during the meeting that the decision likely meant the collapse of negotiations over a hostage deal.

Palestinians should "mobilize" and attack Israelis, Hamas said on Sunday. 

"We are mobilizing all cities, villages, and camps to ignite the fire against the occupation and to block the settlers' roads by all means. We call on everyone who bears arms to direct their bullets at the chests of the occupiers, who continue to commit massacres against our steadfast people in the Gaza Strip," the statement read. 

Opposition head Yair Lapid called on the Histadrut and employers to strike following the recovery of the hostages' bodies on Sunday. 

"They were alive. Netanyahu and the death cabinet decided not to save them. There are still live hostages there, a deal can still be made. Netanyahu is not doing it [a deal] for political reasons," Lapid stated. 

"I call on the Histadrut and the employers and the local authorities to shut down the economy. The country is collapsing, it cannot go on like this," he concluded.