On a tense Saturday evening in Jerusalem, the anguished voices of hostage families echoed outside Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s residence, their pleas for action and accusations of betrayal resonating with a nation still reeling from the aftermath of the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack. The protest, held on September 20, 2025, drew thousands of demonstrators and highlighted the deeply personal and political divisions that have come to define Israel’s ongoing war with Hamas and the international response to the crisis.
Einav Zangauker, whose son Matan was abducted from a kibbutz near Gaza during the October 7 massacre, stood at the center of the protest encampment. Her words were raw and unfiltered as she addressed the crowd: “There is no place hot enough in hell for this leader!” she declared, referring to Netanyahu. According to The Times of Israel, Zangauker accused the prime minister of “intentionally decid[ing] to condemn his citizens to death” and sacrificing her son to maintain his grip on power. “My son… has become a victim of the Netanyahu government; he is sacrificing him to stay in power,” she said, her voice trembling with emotion.
The October 7 attack remains a national trauma. On that day, Hamas militants crossed into Israel, killing approximately 1,200 people and abducting dozens, including Zangauker’s son. As of September 21, 2025, about 22 hostages are believed to be alive and 28 confirmed dead, still held in Gaza, according to World Israel News. The fate of these captives has become a lightning rod for public anger, with many families accusing the government of failing to prioritize their release.
At the Jerusalem rally, Anat Angrest, the mother of another abducted soldier, leveled a similarly scathing indictment at Netanyahu. “He is sending Jews to kill Jews in order to stay in office,” she said, accusing the prime minister of “sending soldiers to kill their brothers in captivity.” Her words, echoing through the crowd, reflected the growing sense of despair among hostage families who fear that the ongoing IDF ground operation in Gaza City is putting their loved ones at even greater risk.
“At the same time that I heard — and also felt — the explosions on my Matan this week, [Bezalel] Smotrich and [Itamar] Ben Gvir fantasized about building cities and real estate in Gaza!” Zangauker added, referencing the far-right government ministers whose plans for post-war Gaza have drawn widespread criticism. The protest camp’s opposition to the military operation is rooted in the belief that Hamas is holding hostages in various neighborhoods of Gaza City, making any advance by Israeli forces a potential death sentence for the captives.
The anger was not confined to the Israeli government. Protesters unfurled a giant banner addressed to U.S. President Donald Trump, reading: “President Trump, be our savior!” The appeal underscored the growing frustration with international mediation efforts, which have so far failed to secure a comprehensive hostage deal. Yotam Cohen, brother of kidnapped soldier Nimrod, voiced the families’ impatience: “The moment Israel decides it wants a deal, there will be a deal; until then, the hostages will continue to suffer.”
While the families lay blame at Netanyahu’s feet, U.S. mediators, including officials from the Biden administration, have repeatedly stated that Hamas’s refusal to negotiate in good faith has made securing any agreement nearly impossible. According to World Israel News, American officials insist that the deadlock is driven by Hamas’s intransigence, not a lack of will on the Israeli side.
The pain of the hostage crisis is not limited to Israel. In the United Kingdom, Mandy Damari, the mother of freed British-Israeli hostage Emily Damari, has emerged as a prominent critic of Western policy toward the conflict. Emily was shot in the hand during her abduction on October 7, 2023, losing two fingers, and spent 15 harrowing months in captivity before her release in January 2025. On September 21, 2025, Mandy Damari sharply criticized UK Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer for the UK government’s decision to formally recognize a Palestinian state while hostages remain captive and the war grinds on.
“Even if he [Sir Keir Starmer] thinks he is right, he is rewarding Hamas for the 7 October barbaric and savage attack on Israel when the hostages are still not back, the war is not over and Hamas are still in power in Gaza,” Damari told BBC. She accused the UK government of living “under a two-state delusion,” arguing that recognition of Palestine, coordinated with Australia and Canada, was poorly timed and sent the wrong message to Hamas.
Sir Keir Starmer, for his part, insisted that the recognition was not a reward for Hamas — a proscribed terrorist organization in the UK — but an effort to revive hope for a two-state solution. “It could have no future, no role in government, no role in security,” he said of Hamas, emphasizing that the move was intended to “revive the hope of peace for the Palestinians and Israelis.”
Reactions to the UK’s decision were swift and sharply divided. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the recognition, calling it “a huge reward to terrorism.” Israel’s foreign ministry echoed this sentiment, stating that recognition of the Palestinian state was “nothing but a reward for jihadist Hamas.” The Hostages and Missing Families Forum UK, representing relatives of captives with British ties, also criticized the move, saying: “Instead of confronting Hamas, Britain has emboldened it. Hamas has already celebrated the UK’s move as a victory, while continuing to block ceasefire deals and humanitarian access.”
On the other side of the debate, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas welcomed the UK announcement, calling it a step toward allowing the “state of Palestine to live side by side with the state of Israel in security, peace and good neighbourliness.” Palestinians in the West Bank expressed cautious optimism, with Mohammad Hasib telling BBC: “We hope that all European countries will follow and recognise our state so we can stop this war.”
Within the UK, political leaders were equally divided. Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch called the recognition “absolutely disastrous,” warning that “rewarding terrorism with no conditions whatsoever put in place for Hamas… leaves hostages languishing in Gaza and does nothing to stop the suffering of innocent people caught in this war.” Reform UK’s Nigel Farage echoed the criticism, while Green Party MP Ellie Chowns and Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey hailed the move as “long overdue” and a vital affirmation of Palestinian rights.
The humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the West Bank continues to devastate lives, with Israel’s latest ground operation in Gaza City described as “cataclysmic” by a UN official. Hundreds of thousands have been forced to flee, and the suffering shows no sign of abating. As the international community debates the path to peace, the voices of hostage families — anguished, angry, and desperate for resolution — remain at the heart of Israel’s national conversation.
For many, the question now is not just when the hostages will return, but whether the political and diplomatic maneuvers unfolding on the world stage will ultimately bring them home — or leave them, and their families, in limbo.