Mourners line streets for funeral of slain Israeli hostages

Hundreds of mourners lined the streets of Jerusalem on Monday as the parents of killed American-Israeli hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin drove by in a procession to his funeral.

Goldberg-Polin was one of 40 people taken hostage from the Nova festival during the October 7 attack by Hamas.

His body was among those of six Israeli hostages recovered by Israeli forces in Gaza over the weekend, triggering a wave of grief and fury and nationwide strikes that have shut down much of Israel.

Israel’s military said they were recently killed by Palestinian Hamas militants.

Hershe’s mother, Rachel Goldberg-Polin said: “I think we all did every single thing we could. The hope that perhaps a deal was near was so authentic, it was crunchy. It tasted close. But it was not to be so. Those beautiful six survived together and those beautiful six died together, and now they will be remembered together forever.”

Flights, transport services and hospitals were severely disrupted as protesters called for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to bring the remaining 101 hostages home from Gaza, underscoring deep divisions in Israel over his approach.

U.S. President Joe Biden said on Monday he did not think Netanyahu was doing enough to secure such an agreement.

Biden said he was close to presenting his own final proposal for a deal to bring hostages home.

Netanyahu has faced months of protests and pressure from his own defence minister as well as senior generals and intelligence officials.

But he has insisted on maintaining Israeli troops in key points of the Gaza Strip after any ceasefire.

British foreign minister David Lammy announced the suspension of 30 of 350 UK licences to export arms to Israel on Monday, saying it did not amount to an arms embargo.