Number of Israelis signing petitions demanding return of captives swells to 128,000

The number of Israelis signing petitions demanding the return of captives from Gaza, even if that means halting the ongoing war on Palestinians, has swelled to 128,000, with nearly 50 petitions currently circulating.

According to the Restart Israel platform, which publishes petitions for Israelis to sign, the number of signatories on Friday reached 128,114, up considerably from 120,000 on Thursday.

The platform also said the number of petitions in circulation rose from 43 on Thursday to 47 on Friday.

The petitions come from a variety of sources, including reserve and retired Israeli military personnel as well as civilian groups supporting the military messages. However, the majority of signatories appear to be civilians.

According to the Restart Israel website, more than 11,000 reserve and retired soldiers have signed 20 petitions across various Israeli military units.

Last week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused the military signatories of insubordination and threatened them with dismissal. He alleged foreign-funded groups were backing efforts to bring down his coalition, which took office in late 2022.

The petition movement followed the collapse of phase one of a ceasefire and hostage-prisoner exchange deal, which began Jan. 19 with Qatari and Egyptian mediation, and US support. While Hamas complied with its terms, Netanyahu, under pressure from his far-right coalition, refused to move to phase two. Israel resumed military operations March 18.

The second year of genocide in Gaza has seen more than 51,000 Palestinians killed since October 2023, most of them women and children.

In November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant over war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice over its actions in the enclave.