Protest at Hostages Square
Protest at Hostages SquarePaulina Patimer

Israelis on Saturday night continued to hold nationwide demonstrations demanding a ceasefire and the release of hostages held in Gaza.

Einav Zangauker, whose son Matan Zangauker is among the hostages, spoke during a protest in Tel Aviv and issued a direct appeal to US President-elect Donald Trump, urging him to press Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to end the conflict in Gaza and secure the hostages' release.

"Mr. President, please enter the fray now. The hostages will not survive the winter. They won't last [through the period] until you are sworn in, in January," Zangauker warned.

She questioned the government's priorities, stating, "How is it possible that an Israeli proposal to end the war in the north has been put forward, but there is no Israeli initiative to end the war in the south?"

She further criticized Netanyahu's actions, saying, "How is it possible that even after Hamas has been defeated, Netanyahu refuses to end the war in Gaza in exchange for a deal? How is it possible that the cabinet stopped discussing the issue of the hostages? Netanyahu gave up on the hostages long ago, and now he is sacrificing them and the soldiers while his extremist partners are working to establish settlements in Gaza."

Itzik Horn, whose two sons, Eitan and Yair, were kidnapped from Kibbutz Nir Oz, said, "Major General Nitzan Alon told the cabinet members this week that time is running out, that winter is coming and that conditions are deteriorating. According to the doctors, the hostages who are still alive are in a terrible state of health."

"The hostages are suffering from extreme malnutrition, and are exposed to health risks from a variety of diseases," added Horn.

Israel and Hamas have held several rounds of indirect negotiations, mediated by Egypt, Qatar and the US, on a hostage release deal. Qatar announced last week it would pause its mediation role until both parties demonstrate greater commitment to reaching an agreement.

The United States had been pushing an outline for a ceasefire and hostage release deal that President Joe Biden first laid out in May, but Hamas rejected that proposal and every other proposal that has been presented to it.

Recently, Egypt publicly proposed a two-day ceasefire deal in which four Israeli hostages would be released in exchange for terrorist prisoners held in Israel and in the ten days following, negotiations would be held regarding a more extensive deal.

Hamas initially said it does not support a limited timeframe of several days in which the organization would return some of the hostages and afterwards the fighting would continue. Later, sources in Hamas told the Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper that the terrorist organization is willing to consider Egypt’s proposal as well as other proposals.

White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan made clear last week, during an appearance on CBS News' Face the Nation, that Hamas was at fault for the failure of the negotiations and not Israel.