They felt they had to be seen and heard more than ever before. The crowd unfurled a massive banner above their heads that read: "It's now or never." Thousands of hands held up phones with their flashes on. On Saturday, October 4, turnout was overwhelming – 200,000 people according to organizers – at Hostages Square in Tel Aviv. The prospect of the imminent release of the last 40 captives still held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip – half of whom are believed to be alive – was fueling hope. "Within 72 hours," said Donald Trump, as the launch of indirect negotiations under US auspices was announced for Sunday in Cairo.

"We don't want to talk about a deadline; we just want to be certain that it will happen, but we trust Trump," said Daniel Lifshitz, 37, grandson of Oded Lifshitz, founder of the Nir Oz kibbutz, who died in captivity, and of Yosheved, released 17 days after the terrorist attack on October 7, 2023. Freedom has never seemed so close since Hamas announced it had agreed to release the hostages as part of the plan proposed by the US president.

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