Hunger strike for hostages outside Knesset continues into second week

Thirteen Israelis continued a hunger strike, demanding a deal that would bring the hostages home on Monday. Nearly half of the hunger strikers have been striking since September 22, with others joining in the following days.

Many of those striking have gathered outside the Knesset, with some sleeping there and others coming and going in rotation.

Rabbi Avidan Freedman, who joined the strike, said the strike was started by activist Orna Shimoni, who is 83 years old and has been on strike for three days.

"The demand of the strike is to bring all of the hostages home - all of those who are alive, alive, back to their lives, and all of those who are dead for proper burial," said Freedman.

"The most realistic way to do that is by signing a deal in order to bring them home now and not to waste any more time," he added. 

"We don't want a repeat of the many hostages who were alive and came back home in caskets."

Freedman decided to join the strike after hearing Shimoni's call and realizing that he agreed with her that it was time to take more extreme measures to bring the hostages home.

"I agreed with her reading of the situation, how desperate things are; we've tried everything, and nothing has worked yet," he explained.

The strike's focus is on the hostages first

Freedman explained that the demand of the strikers is first and foremost for other Israelis.

"Everyone who agrees that we need a deal as soon as possible needs to join us [or] to support us," he said, adding that he hopes this will create more pressure on the government to do everything it can to bring the hostages home.