TEHRAN- Tens of thousands of protesters in many Israeli cities have poured their anger out on the streets against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his failure to bring home captives in Gaza.

Surveys indicate an increasing number of Israelis believe Netanyahu is prioritizing the ongoing bombardment of residential zones in Gaza over the freedom of captives held in the enclave to avoid a lengthy prison sentence once the war is over.    

On Saturday night, Israeli media cited organizers of an anti-government demonstration in Tel Aviv as saying more than 80,000 protesters had gathered to demand Netanyahu’s removal from office for his failure to bring home Israeli captives. 

The demands of the rising protest movement also include early elections and an immediate exchange deal for the release of the captives in exchange for Palestinian political prisoners held in Israeli jails. 

A prominent figure within the protest movement to free the captives, Einav Zangauker, the mother of Matan Angrest (a member of a tank unit at the Nahal Oz army base before being taken captive), said, “We need to understand once and for all, the conditions for a deal have not changed. There won’t be a deal without the war ending.”

“If the government doesn’t reach a deal now, Israel will in the end be forced to end the war without the return of hostages,” Israeli media also quoted her as saying. 

And in a message to her son, she added “Matan, when you return home, I will tell you that the government betrayed you, all of you, all of us”.

On Saturday Reuters cited an official as saying that indirect Israel-Hamas talks on the captives-prisoner exchange are expected to restart next week. 

"It was decided that in the coming week negotiations will open based on new proposals led by the mediators, Egypt and Qatar, and with active US involvement," the source said, according to Reuters.

The talks have been stalled since May 6 when Hamas accepted a ceasefire deal proposed to the resistance movement by Egypt, Qatar, and the United States. 

The proposal was widely believed to have been approved by Tel Aviv as well, but Netanyahu’s government was reportedly taken by surprise when Hamas accepted the proposal.

It has since been reported that Netanyahu’s cabinet decided to reverse its approval of the text, embarrassing the United States. 

Videos have circulated of Israeli police arresting some of the protesters in Tel Aviv on Saturday night. 

Anti-government rallies have been held in other cities too, including occupied al-Quds (Jerusalem), Haifa, Caesarea, and Rehovot.

The father of a member of the Israeli occupation forces, Roni Eshel, who was killed on October 7, delivered a speech to the protesters in Tel Aviv. 

Eyal Eshel said, “Netanyahu, you were warned and you ignored it. Only because of that, you must take responsibility and resign immediately. You are not worthy of Roni”. 

Israeli media also quoted a former Knesset member, Mickey Rosenthal, as telling the crowd, “I accuse you, Benjamin Netanyahu, for the 15 years that preceded the Hamas invasion”. Referring to October 7, he said, “You pursued a policy of forgiveness and tolerance toward the threat because of an incorrect outlook that prefers repeated rounds of fighting and friction [with Hamas]”.

In Rehovot, Yair Golan, a retired general, told the crowd, “For years, Netanyahu has run away from making decisions. The king of the status quo. He won’t change anything, and he won’t act to fix anything. All his resources are being used only for his survival.”

“Netanyahu’s fear of dealing with difficult decisions led to the worst series of failures in (Israeli) history … The failure of October 7 is the result of running away from difficult but necessary decisions. There are those who are trying to not take responsibility for the failures, but it doesn’t matter. No one will run away.”

Footage also showed protesters being arrested elsewhere. 

The latest protests come as Israeli media reported that the occupation army’s leadership is concerned about both the exhaustion of recruits and the significant shortage of manpower among top officials.

The nearly 8-month Israeli war on Gaza has reportedly stretched the Israeli occupation forces beyond its capabilities, and its current size, in comparison with a decade ago, is proving inadequate for the wide-ranging military ground missions that it unexpectedly faces.