A rally in Hostages Square
Thousands of Israelis gathered on Saturday, 24 October, in Hostages Square in Tel Aviv, three days before the general election on Tuesday, 27 October. Estimates of the crowd differ: El País reported tens of thousands, while Al Jazeera and 20 Minuten wrote of thousands. The protest was organised by the October Council, a group founded by families of people taken to Gaza, and it drew former hostages, survivors of the Hamas attack and relatives of the dead.
Opposition leaders attended, among them Gadi Eisenkot of the Yashar party, who is Benjamin Netanyahu's main centre-right rival, and Yair Golan, leader of The Democrats. Eisenkot was greeted with applause when he arrived. Thousands of ordinary citizens from across Israel joined them in the square.
What the protesters demanded
The organisers want an independent state commission of inquiry into the security failures before the 7 October 2023 attack. In a statement posted on X ahead of the rally, the October Council wrote:
Three days before the election, we will hold the culminating event marking three years of struggle to uncover the truth, demand accountability and establish a state commission of inquiry.
Banners read "The end of Netanyahu is near" and "Peace is the solution