Netanyahu rejects protests over Philadelphi Corridor hostage deal demand
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was assailed Wednesday by angry protests from families of hostages, colleagues-turned-critics and leaders across the Middle East.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was assailed Wednesday by angry protests from families of hostages, colleagues-turned-critics and leaders across the Middle East.
Netanyahu's insistence on a controversial demand in cease-fire talks has defied the eruption of anger in the wake of the killings of six hostages in Hamas captivity, threatening to derail hopes that their deaths might at least force progress in stalled negotiations.
The Israeli leader's public rejection of pressure to accept the withdrawal of troops from the Gaza-Egypt border has fueled new backlash from officials across the region. His refusal to reverse course has also inflamed a protest movement lent urgency by Hamas' "new instructions" that saw captors shoot dead the hostages before they could be rescued, according to Israeli officials.
Protesters gathered early Wednesday outside the headquarters of Netanyahu's party, Likud, while a string of demonstrations were planned later at major squares across the country and outside the homes of key lawmakers for a fourth night.
And in a sign of the depth of anger, a source with knowledge of the situation told NBC News that the wife of one of the six slain hostages refused to meet with Netanyahu on Tuesday.
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