Israeli strikers and protesters demand Gaza deal after 6 hostages killed

Our live coverage has ended. You can read more on today’s protests here.

Following the news of the killing of the six hostages in Gaza, officials involved in the mediation of the ceasefire talks have been on the phone with each other discussing ways to push the ceasefire and hostage deal forward, a source familiar with the discussions tells CNN.??

But then Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave his press conference?Monday?evening, arguing that Israel will never leave the Philadelphi corridor, “and this guy torpedoed everything in one speech,” the source?said in an initial reaction?afterwards.

Mossad director David Barnea also traveled to Doha and met with Qatar’s prime minister on Monday.?

Lead Hamas negotiator Khalil Al-Hayya told Al Jazeera on Sunday there would be no deal without the IDF withdrawing from the corridor, which runs along the Egypt-Gaza border.?Between the hostages and the Israeli military presence in the Philadelphi corridor, the “Philadelphi [corridor] was more important,” Hayya alleged.

Netanyahu’s recent insistence on staying in Philadelphi represents a change in position, sources familiar with the negotiations say. When US President Joe Biden announced the framework on May 31 – which he said Israel had agreed to – it envisioned an IDF withdrawal eastwards from populated areas. According to?a draft published?in Israeli media, there was no mention of Philadelphi.

In the weeks that followed, Israel then?added?remaining in Philadelphi as a condition and the?recent negotiations?have discussed what the IDF presence long the border would look like.

A permanent IDF presence in the Philadelphi corridor would also contradict?the US position?on the future of Gaza. On the Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s most recent trip to Israel in August he told reporters that?the US will not accept “any long-term occupation of Gaza by Israel.” Administration officials have made clear they expect a full withdrawal by Israel from Gaza as the result of any permanent ceasefire agreement.

Hamas has warned that Israeli hostages held in Gaza will return “inside coffins” if Israel tries to free them through military pressure.?

A statement released by the militant group, which controls Gaza, says its fighters guarding prisoners held in the Palestinian enclave have “new instructions” on how to deal with hostages if Israeli forces get close, and released an illustrated poster apparently showing hostages threatened with a gun.

“Netanyahu’s insistence on liberating the prisoners through military pressure instead of concluding a deal will mean that they will return to their families inside coffins and their families will have to choose whether they are dead or alive,” read a statement by Abu Obaida, the spokesperson of Hamas’ military wing Al-Qassam Brigades on Monday.

The Hamas statement follows the recovery of six hostages’ bodies from Gaza by Israeli forces over the weekend. An Israeli spokesperson said Sunday the hostages had been “brutally murdered by Hamas terrorists” shortly before soldiers reached them.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a news conference in Jerusalem on Monday, September 2.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel will retaliate strongly against Hamas following the killing of the six hostages whose bodies were rescued over the weekend.

Netanyahu hinted that the response would be akin to the retaliatory strike against Hezbollah in July that killed the Iran-backed group’s top commander Fu’ad Shukr.

President Joe Biden speaks to the media as he departs from the South Lawn of the White House on Monday, September 2.

President Joe Biden deflected questions about his comments earlier Monday on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, telling CNN they were “in the middle of negotiations” on a possible hostage deal.

CNN’s Arlette Saenz asked the president what more he wanted Netanyahu to do, hours after telling reporters the prime minister wasn’t doing enough.

Asked about Netanyahu’s comments about him, Biden responded: “We’re still in negations – not with him, but my colleagues from Qatar and Egypt.”

Police members detain a person during a demonstration calling for the immediate return of hostages held in Gaza, near?Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's residence in Jerusalem, on Monday, September 2.

They were sons, daughters, brothers and sisters to a nation. Little wonder Saturday’s discovery of six hostages killed?in Gaza has Israelis’ blood boiling.

The nation feels on a cusp?of a major turning point.

Gripped?by?swelling protests and labor union strikes, the weeks ahead?for?Israel?are unpredictable. These well-tested democratic tools of change have toppled governments before, but it’s best to remember that?Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is a political survivor extraordinaire.

Even now, Netanyahu and?the?hard-right nationalist members of his cabinet are working to shut down the legal protests and strikes?through a court order, that seemed in the short term at least to have been?successful.

Yet despite the outcome being unclear, this?tumultuous?moment has been building for months.

Galvanized by growing frustration waiting for Netanyahu to cut a deal with Hamas?to bring home from Gaza?the 101 remaining hostages, including 35 who are believed to be dead, according to data from the Israeli Prime Minister’s officer, it is Hamas, not surprisingly, that appears to be having a decisive say.

Read more analysis here.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a news conference in Jerusalem on Monday.

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu emphasized that Israel must control the Philadelphi corridor, which links Gaza to Egypt.

“We’re not going to withdraw from the Philadelphi corridor,” Netanyahu said Monday night in a press conference, adding that its control is crucial to bring back the hostages and eliminate the threat of Hamas.

“The axis of evil needs the Philadelphi corridor. We need to have it under our control,” he said.

The prime minister called for unity but acknowledged divisions within his cabinet, saying ministers in his government believe Israeli forces should withdraw from the corridor.

“That’s why I had to bring it to the cabinet formally to make sure it’s clear that there are things we are not going to compromise on,” Netanyahu said, adding that he was shocked to hear the sentiments of those ministers after the cabinet decision to stay in the corridor was adopted, raising concerns about what kind of message that would send to Hamas.

About the Philadelphi corridor: The corridor is a 14-kilometer (8.7-mile) strip of land along Gaza’s border with Egypt that the Israeli military currently controls. The presence of Israeli troops along the corridor has been a major point of contention in ceasefire and hostage negotiations with Hamas.

Israel has demanded control of the border zone in the first phase of a deal, while Hamas has said Israeli troops must withdraw.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has asked the families of six hostages whose bodies were recovered over the weekend for forgiveness.

At a press conference on Monday night, he said:

He vowed consequences for Hamas, saying, “I repeat tonight, Israel is not going to ignore this massacre. Hamas will pay a heavy price for this — a very heavy price.”

Watch the moment:

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The Hostages and Missing Families Forum praised US President Joe Biden’s comment that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin?Netanyahu is not doing enough?to secure the release of hostages held by Hamas.

“The Hostages Families Forum commends President Biden and his administration for their actions and determination to secure the release of all 101 hostages. We urge Prime Minister Netanyahu to demonstrate similar resilience, determination, and commitment to the lives of the hostages,” a spokesperson for the families forum said in a statement Monday.

“If we needed further proof that Netanyahu is thwarting the return of the hostages – we got it from the US president,” the spokesperson said in a separate statement released in Hebrew.

The families forum also condemned?Netanyahu’s comments?that Israeli forces should remain in the Philadelphi corridor during the first phase of a potential hostage and ceasefire deal.

More background: The Philadelphi corridor is a 14-kilometer (8.7-mile) strip of land along Gaza’s border with Egypt that the Israeli military?currently controls.

The presence of Israeli troops along the corridor has been a major point of contention in ceasefire and hostage negotiations with Hamas.

Israel has demanded control of the border zone in the first phase of a deal, while Hamas has said Israeli troops must withdraw.

Demonstrators march during a protest in Tel Aviv calling for action to secure the release of Israeli hostages on September 2.

Demonstrators are continuing to lament the Israeli government’s failure to secure a ceasefire-for-hostages deal as night falls.

As of 7 p.m. local time, people were still out on the streets in cities and towns such as Tel Aviv,?Caesarea, Rehovot and Jerusalem demanding Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sign a ceasefire deal and secure the release of the remaining hostages.

People attend a demonstration near Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's residence in Jerusalem on Monday.

Video shared with CNN shows two protestors on the ground outside Israel’s military headquarters, in Tel Aviv painted with fake blood, their hands and feet tied.?

The protests broke out after Israel’s military recovered the bodies of six hostages killed in Gaza this weekend. Protesters say Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has not done enough to protect the hostages, adding to mounting pressure on the leader to secure a ceasefire deal with Hamas.

The United Kingdom will suspend some?arms?exports to Israel, with about 30 out of 350?arms?export licenses being suspended, UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy announced Monday.

The decision is due to a “clear risk that they might be used to commit or facilitate a serious violation of international humanitarian law,” Lammy said, speaking to lawmakers in the House of Commons.

Lammy said a?government assessment concluded that “for certain?UK?arms?exports to Israel, there does exist a clear risk that they might be used to commit or facilitate a serious violation of international humanitarian law.” Under the country’s Export Controls Act, around 30 of about 350 export licenses to Israel will therefore be suspended, some of which “include equipment that we assess is for use in the current conflict in Gaza,” Lammy said.?

The?UK?suspension of some?arms?sales to Israel is “not a determination of innocence or guilt,” Lammy added. “This is not a blanket ban. This is not an?arms?embargo.”

Mourners gather by the grave of American-Israeli citizen Hersh Goldberg-Polin during the funeral in Jerusalem on Monday.

President?Biden has been “clear” that Hamas is the one responsible for the deaths of American-Israeli citizen Hersh Goldberg-Polin and five other hostages, a US official said Monday, responding to criticism of Biden’s comments earlier that Prime Minister Netanyahu wasn’t doing enough to secure a hostage deal.?

Biden said earlier Monday that Netanyahu is not doing enough to secure the release of hostages held by Hamas and added he is “close” to presenting a final deal to negotiators working to strike a hostage and ceasefire agreement in Gaza.

“We’re very close to that,” he said when asked by CNN if he was planning to present a final proposal.

The president’s comments came as he was returning to the White House to huddle with American officials who have been working to secure a deal that would pair a release of hostages held in Gaza with a pause in the fighting.

Some background: Earlier Monday, a senior Israeli source criticized Biden’s remarks about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not doing enough to secure the release of hostages held by Hamas.

“It is remarkable that President Biden is trying to pressure Prime Minister Netanyahu, who agreed to both the president’s proposal on May 31st and to the American bridging proposal on August 16th, and not Hamas’s leader Sinwar who continues to oppose any deal,” the source said.?

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a state memorial ceremony for the victims of the 1948 Altalena affair, at Nachalat Yitzhak cemetery in Tel Aviv, Israel, on June 18.

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed “there will be a strong reaction” to the?deaths?of the six hostages whose bodies were found in Gaza this weekend,?and plans “to hurt Hamas in a way Israel hasn’t done before,” according to an Israeli official.?

“The intention of the PM now is to hurt Hamas in a way Israel hasn’t done before,” the official told CNN.?

The official also spoke about the Israeli cabinet’s decision on Thursday to demand that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) remain in the Philadelphi corridor, a 14-kilometer (8.7-mile)?strip?that runs along the border between Gaza and Egypt, in the initial phase of a proposed hostage and ceasefire deal.?

The Philadelphi corridor is currently controlled by the IDF. The continued deployment of Israeli troops along the strip during the first phase of a ceasefire agreement has been a major point of contention between Israel and Hamas, with Hamas saying Israeli troops must withdraw from the border zone.

“Everyone who says that we can leave (the) Philadelphi Axis for 42 days knows very well that it will be for 42 years,”?Netanyahu said in a cabinet meeting on Monday, per the Israeli official.?“The world will not allow us to return. Everyone understands the importance of Philadelphi and (Hamas leader Yahya) Sinwar understands it best. That’s why he insists. All the arms smuggling to Gaza is through the Philadelphi corridor. If we change the cabinet’s decision, it will be a terror award, you will not bring back the hostages.”

Correction: An earlier version of this post misattributed what Netanyahu said at the cabinet meeting.

Rachel?Goldberg, center right, attends the funeral of her son Hersh?Goldberg-Polin in Jerusalem on September 2.

The mother of American-Israeli hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin has said she hopes his?killing?“will be a turning point.”?

“I?pray that your death will be a turning point in this horrible situation in which we are all entangled,”?Rachel Goldberg-Polin said in a eulogy for her son at his funeral on Monday.?

Hersh Goldberg-Polin was one of six hostages whose bodies were recovered from Gaza by the Israeli military at the weekend.

The family had done all it could to secure his release, she said, and?had become “absolutely certain” he would come home alive, “but it was not to be.”

“The hope that perhaps a deal was near was so authentic, it was crunchy. It tasted close, but it was not to be so.” She described what she said was “the sickening feeling” the families of all the hostages felt, “that we all could not save.”?

“I take such comfort knowing you were with Carmel, Ori, Eden, Almog and Alex,” she said, naming the other hostages whose bodies were?retrieved this weekend.

“From what I have been told, they each were delightful in very different ways, and I think that is how the six of you managed to stay alive in unimaginable circumstances for so very long. You, each and every single one of you, did every single thing right to survive 329 days in what I’m pretty sure can only be described as hell.”??

A drone view shows as people gather to pay their respects on the street on the day of the funeral of?Hersh?Goldberg-Polin in Jerusalem on September 2.

Israeli President?Isaac Herzog asked the family of American-Israeli hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin for forgiveness for “failing” to bring him home alive.?

In a eulogy delivered at his funeral on Monday, Herzog said?in Hebrew: “I apologize in the name of Israel… for failing to return you home in peace. I’m sorry the state you migrated to when you were 7 years old … did not manage to keep you safe.”?

Addressing his family, he said: “I’m sorry for the fact we couldn’t bring home your Hersh alive.”?

In English, Herzog added:

Herzog described Hamas as “monstrous killers” and said the killing of the six hostages whose bodies were recovered from Gaza this weekend “proved there is no end to its cruelty.”?Goldberg-Polin was kidnapped by Hamas militants from the Nova music festival in southern Israel on October 7.

Israelis pay their respects near the family home of killed US-Israeli hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin, whose body was recovered with five other hostages in Gaza, ahead of his funeral in Jerusalem on September 2.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog is set to?give?a eulogy at the funeral of American-Israeli hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin, which is taking place soon in Jerusalem.

After receiving an invitation from the Goldberg-Polin family, Herzog will “attend Hersh’s funeral and deliver a eulogy,” his office said in a statement sent to CNN.

Large crowds have been congregating on Monday afternoon outside the Har?Hamenuchot?cemetery in Jerusalem where Goldberg-Polin?will?be laid to rest.

Some background: Goldberg-Polin, who was among the hundreds of young people attending the Nova music festival in southern Israel on October 7, was forced to hide from Hamas in a bomb shelter with his friends.

As militants lobbed grenades into the bunker, Goldberg-Polin rushed to throw them out, before his arm was blown off from the elbow down, according to a firsthand account from his friend.

Palestinians inspects the area after Israeli attacks on a school belonging to the UNRWA, which is used as a refugee center in Nuseirat Refugee Camp, Gaza, on July 6.

As students in many parts of the world return to school after the summer, the head of UNRWA, the main United Nations agency in Gaza, has said Palestinian children in the strip are being “deprived” of an education.

He warned that “the longer children stay out of school, the higher the risk of a lost generation, fueling resentment and extremism.”

Roughly 300,000 children in Gaza were being educated in UNRWA facilities before the war broke out, he said. Since then, Israel’s military campaign has destroyed or damaged more than 70% of UNRWA’s school buildings, Lazzarini added

The schools that remain have turned into “overcrowded shelters with hundreds of thousands of displaced families,” he said.

The Israeli labor union Histadrut has said it will respect an order?from the Tel Aviv Labor Court to end its general strike this afternoon.

Bezalel Smotrich, Israel’s far-right finance minister, welcomed the decision: “We won’t allow damaging the Israeli economy and consequently serve the interests of?(Hamas leader Yahya)?Sinwar and Hamas!”

The nationwide strike began Monday morning, as demonstrators called on the government to agree a deal to return Israeli hostages held in Gaza.?

However, the Hostage and Missing Families Forum,?which has coordinated efforts to highlight the plight of the captives and their families, urged protesters to stay on the streets and call on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to secure a hostage and ceasefire?agreement.?

Itamar Ben Gvir, Israel's national security minister, in his office at the Knesset in Jerusalem, on July 22.

Israel’s National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir said he will use his powers to prevent a “reckless” hostage and ceasefire deal.

The death of six hostages in Gaza has sparked mass protests in Israel, with demonstrators calling for the government to strike an agreement to bring home around 100 hostages, 35 of whom are believed to be dead.

But Ben Gvir and his far-right allies staunchly oppose the move.

The group marched through Tel Aviv on Monday?holding photos of their relatives, demanding there be no truce.

Some background: Throughoutnearly 11 months of war, Ben Gvir – whose Jewish Power (Otzma Yehudit) party helps to prop up Netanyahu’s governing coalition – has repeatedly opposed any ceasefire-for-hostage deal, threatening to topple the government if it ends the military campaign in Gaza.

Seven people taking part in Israel’s nationwide protests have been arrested on Monday in Tel Aviv for “violating public order and disrupting traffic,” police said in a statement.

According to the police, dozens of demonstrators blocked vehicle traffic using smoke grenades “a short while ago.”

“Police forces that quickly arrived at the scene, operated in order to clear the rioters and restore orderly traffic,” the statement said.

Huge protests have broken out after Israel’s military recovered the bodies of six hostages killed in Gaza this weekend, with demonstrators aiming to put pressure on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to secure a ceasefire and hostage deal with Hamas.

Health workers vaccinate a child against polio at the United Nations Nuseirat Health Center, in the Nuseirat refugee camp, central Gaza, on September 1.

A United Nations-led polio vaccination campaign reached around 87,000 children in Gaza on its first official day, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) said on Monday, citing the World Health Organization.

According to?UNRWA,?the campaign’s second phase will focus on southern Gaza and the final one in the north. It aims to immunize 640,000 children by September 12. This equates to over 90% of children under the age of 10.

The campaign is facilitated by a?series of pauses in fighting?agreed to by Israel.

UNRWA spokesperson Louise Wateridge told CNN on Sunday it is “critical” that there will be no fighting during the campaign.

The return of polio to Gaza is a measure of the destruction wrought by more than 10 months of Israeli bombardment. The UN’s campaign comes after the highly infectious virus was found in?sewage samples?in the strip in June. A?baby has since become the first person?in?Gaza?in 25 years to be diagnosed with polio.

Before the war, Gaza had near-universal polio vaccine coverage, but it has since dropped below 90%. Polio mostly affects children under five years old and can cause irreversible paralysis and death. It’s highly infectious and there is no cure. It can only be prevented by immunization.

Gazans under 18 years old make up close to half of the nearly two million people in the enclave, according to Palestinian census figures.

A Tel Aviv court has ordered an early end to the massive general strike that has gripped Israel on Monday.

The labor court located in Bat Yam said the strike must end at 2:30 p.m. local time (7:30 a.m. ET), three and a half hours earlier than labor union Histadrut intended to halt it.

Histadrut said it would comply with the ruling.

Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid attends a rally by families and supporters of hostages held in the Gaza Strip in Tel Aviv, Israel, on September 2.

Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid met demonstrators gathered in Tel Aviv on Monday, he said?in a post?on X.?

Lapid posted a photo of himself at a rally, saying he was “with thousands of Israeli patriots who took to the streets today in a cry for the return of the hostages home. Now.”

A nationwide strike and demonstrations are underway across Israel, with protesters calling for the government to reach a deal for the immediate return of the hostages held in Gaza since the Hamas-led attacks on October 7.?

The protests in Tel Aviv are centered around Begin Road, a main thoroughfare in the city. Images from the scene show protesters blocking the road and chanting: “You’re not alone! We are with you!” People can be seen waving the Israeli flag, and holding placards reading, “Seal the Deal” and “A deal will save them from death.” A small group of people later marched north to block the Ayalon highway in one direction.?

Gil Dickmann, cousin of hostage Carmel Gat, speaks to the crowd as family members and supporters gathered in Tel Aviv, Israel, on February 20.

The cousin of one of the hostages killed in Gaza has condemned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for “making it impossible” to secure a ceasefire-for-hostages deal, and implored the country’s government to change course in the wake of a massive strike and protests on Monday.

Gil Dickmann, whose cousin Carmel Gat was one of the six hostages found dead in a tunnel under Gaza on Saturday, told CNN Monday that Israel’s government was “postponing the deal” that may have brought about the release of Gat and the other captives.

“We can’t really believe that?this is how it ends,” Dickmann said of his loss on CNN Newsroom.

“We know that Hamas has agreed to a deal at some point and Israel was the one putting in more and more terms, and actually postponing the deal,” he said. “We know that the decision that our prime minister Netanyahu has made made it impossible for Carmel and other hostages to return, and put their lives in great danger.”

“That’s what killed them,” he said.

Dickmann added that he was reluctant to engage in a “blame game” over the deaths. “It’s both sides who are to blame,” he said.

But he praised the general strike and mass protests that have gripped Israel Monday, targeted at Netanyahu and his failure to secure a deal. “This is very moving,” he said. “I know that’s exactly what she would have wanted: for people to come out and demand the release of the other hostages.”

“I hope that the government is not just going to look away, and to choose death over life,” he said.

The nationwide strike that has gripped Israel will conclude at 6 p.m. local time (11 a.m. ET) on Monday, a spokesperson for the country’s largest labor union told CNN.?

Nir Steinberg, a spokesperson for Histadrut — the group that called the strike — said a representative at a hearing in Israel’s Labor Court had informed the court what time it would end the strike.?

The walkouts are fuelled by fury at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the lack of a ceasefire-for-hostages deal.

The general strike in Israel is unlikely to have a major impact on the country’s economy, according to Esteban Klor, a senior researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies at Tel Aviv University.

Klor told CNN that participation in the strike was limited, with small businesses, including restaurants and grocery stores, remaining open in Jerusalem.

If the strike drags on or sparks renewed political instability, it may have a “larger economic effect,” he said. At the same time, he said, financial markets could react positively if investors think the strike will hasten an end to the war in Gaza.

Israel’s stock market was trading in positive territory on Monday. The benchmark Tel Aviv 125 Index — which comprises the 125 most valuable companies on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange and is seen as a barometer for Israel’s economy — gained 0.5% in midday?trade locally.

Israel’s near 11-month war in Gaza has taken a heavy toll on its economy, which is likely to shrink for a second consecutive year in 2024 after population growth is considered.

The government has delayed publishing a budget for 2025, as the conflict causes the budget deficit and debt issuance to soar.

“They cannot continue financing the war exclusively on borrowing,” he said, noting that Israel’s “risk premium” is “increasing rapidly,” meaning investors are demanding higher returns to buy Israeli assets, such as bonds.

Last month, Fitch joined S&P and Moody’s in downgrading Israel’s credit rating, citing concerns about the war with Hamas. The downgrades by all three major credit ratings agencies could make it more difficult and expensive for Israel to borrow money.

Fitch predicts Israel’s budget deficit — the difference between what the government spends and what it collects in taxes — to reach 7.8% of its gross domestic product in 2024, compared with 4.1% in 2023.

Protesters use megaphones to chant slogans during an anti-government rally calling for the release of Israelis held hostage by Palestinian militants in Gaza since October, in Tel Aviv, Israel, on September 1.

The protesters taking to the streets across Israel are aiming to pressure Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu?and his coalition government to secure a hostage deal, protest leader and physicist Shikma Bressler told CNN’s Rosemary Church.

Bressler said Netanyahu is being pressured “by the super extremist groups in Israel.” She said some in the government who are given decision-making power are “racist, fascist to some level.”

She said Israeli groups are trying to counter this pressure by pushing the government to bring the hostages back and close a deal.

Bressler said these protests differ from those previously held to call for hostage releases.

She said the government’s failure to protect hostages shakes a core agreement in the country.

Efrat Machikawa, niece of hostage Gadi Moshe Mozes, speaks at a press conference with relatives of hostages held captive by Hamas since October 7 at the Israeli embassy in Berlin, Germany, on January 15.

The niece of Gadi Moses, an 80-year-old hostage still being held by Hamas, criticized the Israeli government for failing to agree on a deal to bring back her uncle and other hostages from Gaza.

Her comments come as pressure mounts on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to secure a ceasefire deal with Hamas following the Israeli military’s recovery of the bodies of six hostages killed in Gaza.

A nationwide strike is underway after Israel’s largest labor union called for the action to push for a hostage deal, and protests have broken out with demonstrators saying Netanyahu has not done enough to protect the hostages.

Machikawa said she has become increasingly worried about the status of her uncle after the latest recovery of hostages killed in Gaza.

Anger at Netanyahu: Machikawa called for people to join in protests against Netanyahu, whom she criticized for “not taking responsibility” and accused of prioritizing his political survival over the well-being of the Israeli people and state.

Machikawa described her uncle as a kind and spiritually strong man who “always shines with joy and kindness.”

Moses has spent his life as a peace activist, working with Arab countries and Palestinians to address challenges through agricultural innovation, according to his niece.

She expressed hope for his safe return, saying that his family, including his 12 grandchildren, hope to once again enjoy life’s simple pleasures together.

People at a train station in Tel Aviv walk by a poster covered with photos of hostages held in Gaza on August 24.

After Israel’s military recovered the bodies of six hostages killed in Gaza, the number of captives in the enclave stands at 101, including 35 believed to be dead, according to data from the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office.?

Of that number, 97 people were taken captive in the October 7 attack on Israel.

Before October 7, four hostages were being held in Gaza. Two of those were Israeli service members and are dead, according to the Prime Minister’s Office.

Flights are resuming at Israel’s Ben Gurion International Airport?in Tel Aviv, according to the airport’s spokesperson.

Departures and arrivals were halted from 8 a.m. (1 a.m. ET) as part of a nationwide strike?called by the country’s largest labor union, known as Histadrut, following public fury over the?killing of six captives in Hamas tunnels under Gaza.

Passengers wait for flights at the Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv during a nationwide strike on September 2.

A nationwide strike that threatens to shut down the?“entire Israeli economy.” is underway?to pressure Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to secure a deal that would ensure the return of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza.?

The strike was called by the country’s largest labor union, known as Histadrut, following public fury over the killing of six captives in Hamas tunnels under Gaza.

Protests, planned as part of the strike, are also underway, with some demonstrators blocking one of the main avenues in central Tel Aviv.

Here’s who’s participating in the strike:

Fire and rescue services, as well as special education programs, will operate normally, according to Histadrut.

Workers who join the strike risk not being paid by employers, the Ministry of Finance said on Sunday. Based on basic labor rules in the country, wages will not be paid to those who are absent and take part in the strike, it said.?

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has asked the country’s attorney general to request urgent injunctions to prevent the strike.?A hearing will be held this morning.

Passengers wait for flights at the Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv during a nationwide strike on September 2.

Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion International Airport will halt departures and arrivals of flights for two hours from 8 a.m. (1 a.m. ET) as part of a nationwide strike today, the airport confirmed to CNN.

A strike that threatens to shut down the?“entire Israeli economy.” has been called by the country’s largest labor union to push the government to secure a hostage and ceasefire deal.

It reflects the huge public demonstrations over the killing of six hostages in Gaza whose bodies were recovered over the weekend.

Three of the victims, including Israeli-American Hersh Goldberg-Polin, had been expected to be released in an eventual ceasefire, Israeli officials told CNN.

The Philadelphi corridor is a 14-kilometer (8.7-mile) strip of land along Gaza’s border with Egypt that the Israeli military currently controls.

The presence of Israeli troops along the corridor has been a major point of contention in ceasefire and hostage negotiations with Hamas.

Israel has demanded control of the border zone in the first phase of a deal, while Hamas has said Israeli troops must withdraw.

The impasse ignited a bitter dispute between Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant at a Thursday meeting of the Israeli security cabinet.

Netanyahu says control of the?corridor?is needed to prevent Hamas from resuming arms smuggling through the tunnels beneath it.

Gallant disagreed with Netanyahu’s proposal:

The United States, Qatar and Egypt have spent months trying to broker a deal, with US President Joe Biden pushing Netanyahu to be more flexible on the Philadelphi corridor.

On Thursday, Netanyahu produced maps showing how the military should remain in the corridor during the first phase of the deal – in which some hostages will be released.

Netanyahu’s cabinet voted on the maps he presented, approving them by eight to one, with only Gallant dissenting.

On Sunday, Gallant lambasted the government’s decision to prioritize control of the corridor over reaching a deal, calling it “a moral disgrace.”

He warned his colleagues that “if we continue on this path, we won’t manage to achieve the goals that we set for ourselves.”

Khalil al-Hayya gives a speech during funeral ceremony, held for Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh, in Tehran, Iran on August 1.

Senior Hamas official Khalil?Al-Hayya has blamed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the deaths of six Israeli hostages held by the group.

Al-Hayya said that dozens of hostages in Gaza had been killed by Israeli “strikes along with those who were sitting, guarding, and living with them,” though he did not provide any evidence for this claim.

Israel and Hamas trade blame: Hamas said Israel is the one “who bears responsibility” for the deaths of the six hostages and that Israeli strikes killed them.

Israel’s military said the hostages were killed “a short while” before troops reached them. Israel’s health ministry said they were killed by short-range shots about?48-72 hours before being examined in an autopsy.

Details on Hersh Goldberg-Polin: Al-Hayya also spoke about Hersh Goldberg-Polin, one of the six hostages.

Al-Hayya said Goldberg-Polin’s family had wanted reassurance that their son was alive and well. After an intervention from Qatari officials, Al-Hayya said, a video of him was released to his family in which he speaks to his parents and addresses the Israeli government.

It’s unclear if the video Al-Hayya is referencing is the same one released to Goldberg-Polin’s family in April.

Deal under strain: Al-Hayya told Al Jazeera that “it seems Netanyahu and his team don’t care” about the hostages.

Al-Hayya said that, when it came to Netanyahu choosing between the release of the hostages in a deal and maintaining Israeli military presence at the Philadelphi corridor, the “Philadelphi (corridor) was more important.” The corridor has been a major sticking point in hostage negotiations.

Top row, from left: Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Eden Yerushalmi and Carmel Gat. Bottom row, from left: Ori Danino, Almog Sarusi and Alex Lobanov.

The deaths of six hostages have thrown negotiations for a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas into tumult, with the White House national security adviser saying that “the next few days will be critical” in the push to free those still held in Gaza.

National security adviser Jake Sullivan, in a meeting Sunday, told the families of Americans?held hostage that the administration will “work around the clock for a deal to secure the release of the remaining hostages.”

American officials said the deaths of the hostages, who were seized by Hamas in their October 7 attacks, would not derail the talks. Instead, they described new urgency in reaching a deal.

President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris will meet with the US hostage deal negotiating team in the Situation Room today, according to updated guidance from the White House.

US officials have voiced frustration at what they regard as resistance by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in reaching a deal, leading to occasionally tense conversations between Biden?and his Israeli counterpart.

Still, in their statements late Saturday, neither Biden nor Vice President Kamala Harris applied pressure — either explicit or implied — on Netanyahu to reach a deal.

American officials were acutely aware that pressure would come from inside Israel itself.

As protests against the Israeli government?sweep the country, Netanyahu has accused Hamas of killing the six hostages and said the group was not serious about a ceasefire deal.

Read the full story.

A drone photo of protesters rallying to show support for the hostages who were kidnapped during the deadly October 7 attack, amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza between?Israel?and Hamas, in Tel Aviv,?Israel?on September 1,

In what organizers later described as an “endless sea of protesters,” an outpouring of anger and grief swelled into mass demonstrations in Tel Aviv and beyond on Sunday, after Israel’s military said it had found the bodies of six hostages killed by Hamas in Gaza.

While the protesters hold Hamas responsible for the death of hostages taken in the October 7 attacks, they also blame Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for his handling of the crisis, saying he has not done enough to secure a hostage-ceasefire deal.

Here are some of the scenes from around Sunday’s numerous protests:

In Tel Aviv, where organizers said they held the largest demonstration since the start of the war, crowds chanted “we won’t abandon them” and repeated the names of the six hostages whose bodies were recovered in Gaza.

A group of protesters could be seen standing behind a mock cemetery made of cardboard cutouts holding a sign saying “named after?Benjamin Netanyahu,” casting blame on?him?for the death of the hostages.

One protester told CNN said she was there to show support for her cousin, whose body was repatriated by the Israel Defense Forces overnight.?

When asked if she thinks this protest will bring about a change, she admitted she’s not very hopeful. “I think that the fact that this hasn’t brought any change so far, goes to show how oblivious our leaders are,”?she said.

“Bibi is looking to keep his chair, everything he does is merely for the sake of holding on to his power,” she said, using a popular nickname for Netanyahu. “I believe he’s frightened, even though he has zero emotion or empathy. He neglected them,” she said.

Meanwhile, thousands of protesters gathered in the southern city of Be’er Sheva for the biggest demonstration there since October 7, according to protest organizers.?

At a demonstration in Ra’anana, about 20 kilometers (12 miles) north of Tel Aviv, police appear to have pepper-sprayed protesters. A speaker can be heard in the background of one video telling the crowd to?“have a drink of water and return to the intersection (to protest).”

Another video, from earlier on Sunday,?showed several protesters burning what appeared to be tires on the Road 2 highway, north of Tel Aviv.

More to come: The Hostages and Missing Families Forum has called for the country to be brought to a?“halt” over the news of the killed hostages, and urged the country to put pressure on the government to sign a deal to have the remaining hostages released before they are killed as well.

The country’s largest labor union has called for a nationwide strike, saying the?“entire Israeli economy will shut down”?today.

Shikma Bressler, a prominent political activist and one of the leading figures during the historic 2023 protests?in Israel, told CNN she feels today’s protest is “different.”

“I believe there’s a difference between the public ‘knowing’ something, and actually feeling it. Today, the mind connected to the emotion. The penny dropped — Israel’s government prefers that its citizens die over returning them home, returning the mandate to the people, and heading to elections,” she said.?

Remember: The Israel Defense Forces said Saturday that it located and recovered the bodies of six hostages killed by Hamas in the Gaza Strip and returned them to Israeli territory. That has led to fresh anger at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government for failing to secure a deal for the release of the hostages.

The chairman of Israel’s General Federation of Labor (Histadrut),?Arnon Bar-David, has called for a nationwide general strike to begin Monday morning after holding what he called a “charged and difficult” meeting with representatives of hostage families in Tel Aviv.