TEL AVIV, January 22. /TASS/. Relatives of Israeli hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip broke into a session of the Knesset (parliament) Finance Committee to urge the government to ensure an immediate release of their family members, The Times of Israel said.
According to the newspaper, the parliament’s security staff were unable to stop these people, who were carrying photos of their kidnapped relatives.
The incident occurred when lawmakers were discussing the Bank of Israel governor’s overview of the 2024 budget, which was passed last week, The Jerusalem Post reported.
Tensions flared up again in the Middle East on October 7 after militants from the Gaza Strip-based radical Palestinian group Hamas launched a surprise incursion on Israeli territory, killing many Israeli kibbutz residents living near the Gaza border and abducting more than 240 Israelis, including women, children and the elderly. Hamas described its attack as a response to Israeli authorities’ aggressive actions against the Al-Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem’s Old City. Israel declared a total blockade of the Gaza Strip and launched bombardments of the enclave and some areas in Lebanon and Syria, as well as a ground operation against Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Clashes are also reported in the West Bank.