TEHRAN- Public pressure is mounting on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to reach a deal with Hamas and secure the release of remaining captives in the Gaza Strip as the regime’s war on the Palestinian territory entered its tenth month at the weekend.

Protest groups launched a week of demonstrations in the wake of the Netanyahu regime’s failure to free captives.

The protest movement dubbed the “week of resistance” began with mass protests in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem (al-Quds) on Saturday night.

The protests mark exactly nine months since Israel launched its war of genocide in Gaza on October 7. 

The demonstrators call for new elections, Netanyahu’s resignation and an agreement to free captives.

Protesters staged rallies outside the homes of several Israeli ministers and Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana to have their voices heard.

Eran Schwartz, the executive director of a coalition of protest groups, accused Israeli ministers of abandoning the captives, engaging in discrimination and “hanging on to their chairs at any price.”

The weekend protests were marked by violent clashes between demonstrators and police with protesters injured and arrests made.    

Such protests have become a regular occurrence in Israel over the past months. 

Israel declared war on Gaza after Hamas carried out a surprise military operation in southern Israel on October 7. More than 1,100 people were killed during Operation al-Aqsa Storm and around 250 Israelis and foreigners were taken captive. 

More than 100 captives were freed during a weeklong truce in November last year. Dozens of the remaining captives have also lost their lives during the Israeli army attacks on Gaza. 

The Israeli premier has repeatedly said the Gaza war is aimed at freeing captives and destroying Hamas. He has vowed to continue the war until “total victory” over the resistance movement. But his goals have so far remained elusive.

Israeli political and military officials have acknowledged that the regime will not be able to eliminate Hamas.

Lapid: Stop Gaza war

Opposition leader Yair Lapid is among officials who have thrown a spotlighting on Israel’s failure to achieve its war objectives.

On Sunday, he called on the Netanyahu cabinet to halt the war in the Gaza Strip and negotiate a deal with Palestinian factions to secure the return of captives.

 “We need to stop the war, strike a deal, and bring the hostages home," Lapid told Israeli Army Radio.

He admitted Israel’s inability to continue the Gaza war.

“Israel has always opposed prolonged wars, and our army, which relies on reserve forces, is not equipped for this kind of warfare,” Lapid said.

Earlier this month, war minister Yoav Gallant said the Israel army needs 10,000 more soldiers immediately amid the Gaza war.

Gaza genocide 

Over the past months, the Netanyahu regime has turned a blind eye to domestic calls to end the Gaza war.

Nonetheless, reports suggest that Israel and Hamas are engaged in indirect talks to reach a ceasefire agreement and exchange captives as well as Palestinian prisoners. This clearly indicates that the Palestinian resilience has forced Israel to hold negotiations with Hamas as the regime has failed to achieve its goals during the nine-month onslaught.  

In addition to domestic pressure, Israel has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza.

The Netanyahu regime has slaughtered more than 38,000 Palestinians in Gaza since October 7. Most of the victims are women and children.

Vast tracts of the Gaza Strip also lie in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine.

Israel remains accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. The ICJ found in January this year that there was a risk of violation of the rights of the Palestinian people to protection from genocide.

The UN’s top court ordered Israel to “take all measures within its power” to desist from killing Palestinians in contravention of the genocide convention, to prevent and punish the incitement of genocide, and to facilitate provision of “urgent basic services”.

It also issued a ruling in May calling on Israel to end its operation in the Gaza Strip’s southernmost city of Rafah.

But the regime has ignored the court’s rulings and continued its genocidal war.

Power of resistance 

Neither domestic nor international pressure has been able to force the Israeli regime to reach a ceasefire deal and stop its brutalities against Palestinian people in Gaza.

However, Palestinians have prompted the regime to hold ceasefire negotiations with Hamas through putting up stiff resistance.

In fact, Israel’s engagement in talks with Hamas has revealed its failure to defeat Palestinian resistance fighters in the Gaza battlefield despite receiving huge amounts of weapons from Western countries, including the United States.