Hundreds of thousands protest war in Israel

17 August saw the biggest wave of protests to demand a ceasefire and hostage-release agreement since the war began.

Standing Together writes:

On Sunday our society came out in masses for a day of striking and major disruptions across the country. Standing Together activists took to the streets, spearheading the blocking of highways and intersections and protesting with hundreds of thousands of people throughout the day, leading the call for a ceasefire deal to stop the horrors in Gaza and bring the hostages home. Right now our government is storming ahead with their plan to occupy Gaza, and the public is coming out to say NO to this catastrophe. But to continue mobilizing masses, we need your support.

We came out, students, elderly people, parents, children – from Jerusalem to Haifa, Be’er Sheva to Tel Aviv – to raise a voice for Palestinians in Gaza and for the Israeli hostages. It was truly a historic day and it left no question as to where the public stands. We demand an end to the horror, the starvation, and the destruction and death. The message to our government couldn’t be clearer.

So why is the annihilation continuing? Why are the hostages not back? Because our government is determined to continue on this horrific path to save its own seat. As a grassroots movement fighting for a different future, we know that protesting is simply not enough. The next step must be to organize and transform public energy into political power to finally end this madness.

We must make it much, much harder for our government to carry out the terrifying plans they have for Palestinians in Gaza, for Palestinians in the West Bank, and for all of us here. To do that we have to continue to disrupt everyday routine in a way that makes it impossible for our society to function as normal, to strike and shut down business as a form of pressure on the government, and to refuse to occupy Gaza and lead the hostages to their deaths.

This is our work plan, and we’re gearing up for more and more actions toward this goal. We know that no one is coming to save us – the responsibility is ours.

Thank you to more than 4,500 supporters who got us that much closer by donating to our crowdfunding campaign – we reached our goal of $1 million with matching by generous donors. We owe so much to our allies around the world, especially Friends of Standing Together who contribute each month, who help us turn our plans into reality by supporting us financially. You let us continue to grow even in the most difficult times, and we’re so grateful.

Thank you for being in the fight with us, especially now.

Posted 23 August 2025