


Thousands of people held a protest in Jerusalem for a second day on Tuesday, calling for fresh elections and an end to the war in Gaza.
Many Israelis, anguished over the hostages still held in Gaza and the ongoing war, accuse Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of putting political interests ahead of all else.
They say the government has lost control of the 8-month-old war and have been demanding an agreement to stop the fighting and return the hostages.
Netanyahu denies the accusations and says he has the country’s best interests in mind.
Months of cease-fire talks have failed to find common ground between Hamas and Israeli leaders.
On Monday, Netanyahu disbanded his war cabinet, a move that consolidates his influence over the Israel-Hamas war and likely diminishes the odds of a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip anytime soon.
Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza has killed more than 37,100 people, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians in its count.
Israel launched the war after Hamas’ October 7 attack, in which militants stormed into southern Israel, killed some 1,200 people — mostly civilians — and abducted about 250.