Thousands of Israelis took to the streets again on Saturday to protest against Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing religious government.
In Tel Aviv, demonstrators called for early elections as well as the release of the remaining hostages held by Palestinian resistance movement Hamas in Gaza, according to media reports.
Protests also took place in other cities, including Jerusalem and Haifa.
A former hostage, whose husband is still being held in Gaza, addressed the demonstration in Tel Aviv, calling on Netanyahu to "Bring them home!"
The woman called on the premier to give the Israeli negotiating team a "broad mandate" in talks on an agreement to release the remaining hostages in return for a ceasefire in the Gaza war and a release of Palestinian prisoners. "Don't come home without a deal, bring our loved ones back," she said.
According to news outlet ynet, a former head of military intelligence, Amos Malka, has called on Netanyahu to resign. "The government is sacrificing the hostages, isolating Israel and strengthening Hamas," he said at a demonstration in Caesarea, where Netanyahu has a private villa.
Opponents of the government are planning major demonstrations in Jerusalem from Sunday onwards, which are to last for several days. They also plan to demand the resignation of the government.
Thousands of Israelis began to gather in Kaplan Square, in central Tel Aviv, to participate in the main demonstration demanding a hostage swap deal, the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper reported.
Thousands of Israelis also demonstrated near Netanyahu's residence in Caesarea (north), demanding his resignation, the daily said.
Protesters accused Netanyahu of being "guilty" in the current situation and demanded that his government immediately finalize a deal to free hostages held in Gaza.
Thousands of Israelis demonstrated in Rehavot (central), the Kiryat Gat intersection, Haifa (north), and other cities across the country demanding a hostage swap deal, according to the Israeli Broadcasting Authority.
Protests across the country are expected to pick up pace in the coming hours, local media reported.
Qatar, Egypt, and the US are trying to reach a hostage swap deal and a cease-fire in Gaza, as the first pause lasted only a week in late November last year, which resulted in limited aid entering the Gaza Strip, as well as exchanges of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners, mostly women and children detained in Israeli jails.
Tel Aviv currently holds at least 9,100 Palestinian prisoners in its jails, while there are an estimated 134 Israeli hostages in Gaza. Hamas has announced the death of 70 of them in random Israeli airstrikes.
Israel has waged a deadly military offensive on Gaza since an Oct. 7 cross-border attack led by Hamas in which nearly 1,200 Israelis were killed.
More than 32,700 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have since been killed in Gaza, in addition to mass destruction, displacement and famine conditions.
Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice (ICJ). An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.
