Tel Aviv, 16 December 2023 (dpa/MIA) - Hundreds of people have taken to the streets in Tel Aviv on Friday night, to protest the death of three hostages who were accidentally killed by Israeli soldiers in the Gaza Strip, according to media reports.

Images on Israeli television showed large crowds gathering in the centre of the coastal metropolis and blocking a main street. They demanded that the government take action to secure the immediate release of hostages from the Gaza Strip.

Carrying placards, banners and posters with the names and pictures of many other hostages, the demonstrators marched in the direction of the Israeli army headquarters. As the news website ynet reported, they poured red paint onto the street.

"Their time is running out! Bring them home now," the people shouted.

They criticized Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government for not doing enough to free the hostages kidnapped by Hamas from the Gaza Strip.

A new hostage deal, such as the one reached at the end of November would have prevented incidents like the one that took place in Gaza on Friday, the protestors said.

Israeli army spokesman Daniel Hagari announced on Friday that three Israeli hostages had been accidentally killed by soldiers during fighting in the Gaza Strip. The armed forces had mistakenly identified them as a threat during an operation in the Hamas stronghold of Shejaiya in the north of the sealed-off coastal strip and shot them, he said.

Photo: EPA