Netanyahu apologizes to families of hostages killed in Gaza amid ongoing strikes and protests

TEL AVIV: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu apologized to the families of hostages killed in Gaza. The apology was conveyed by meeting the relatives in person. Six hostages were killed. Netanyahu responded on Monday that Hamas would have to pay a heavy price for this.

At the same time, Netanyahu reiterated that he would not bow to pressure and would not accept Hamas's proposal that Israeli forces withdraw from the Philadelphia Corridor in order to enter into a hostage-free agreement. He added that he would agree to a ceasefire agreement only if Israel maintains a presence on the Egypt-Gaza border. In order to release the hostages, Hamas demanded that Israel withdraw completely from Gaza. Hamas has reiterated that there is no ceasefire agreement without the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip, including the Philadelphia corridor and the Netzarim corridor. Senior Hamas leader Khalil Al-Hayya's explanation came in the context of the US stepping in for a cease-fire agreement.

Meanwhile, Israel was paralyzed by general strikes and mass protests called by labour unions to demand the release of the hostages. Services were suspended on Monday, including at the airport. Schools, banks, factories, airports and seaports went on partial or full strike while bus and rail services were disrupted in some places. This is the first time in 11 months that the Netanyahu government has been involved in a massive strike in the country. Protesters have called for massive rallies in front of the prime minister's house in Jerusalem and at military headquarters in Tel Aviv.