Tens of thousands of Israelis demonstrated on Saturday in front of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office in West Jerusalem to demand the return of Israeli prisoners from Gaza.

Thousands of Israelis joined the foot march that reached the outskirts of western Jerusalem after it started from the city of Tel Aviv last Tuesday.

Israeli Channel 12 estimated the number of participants in the protest at “more than 30,000.”

The demonstrators carried a large banner that read, “Return all abductees.”

Among the demonstrators was Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid.

Before arriving in West Jerusalem, the demonstrators marched in the march called for by the families of the Israeli prisoners, across the highway linking West Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.

The march comes amid faltering negotiations to exchange prisoners between Israel and Hamas, mediated by Qatar and Egypt, which are being conducted with American encouragement.

Channel 12 said: “The families invited all members of the Military Ministerial Council to meet them this evening, saying: You are responsible for returning them (the prisoners) now. Meet us and stop allowing us to beg - this does not make sense.”

The channel indicated that members of the Military Ministerial Council, Benny Gantz and Gadi Eisenkot, “will meet with the people this evening, while Prime Minister Netanyahu and Ministers of Defense Yoav Gallant and Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer have not confirmed their attendance.”

A number of protesters wore black T-shirts with pictures of the prisoners and the phrase, “Send them home.” They also carried banners with pictures of the prisoners and Israeli flags, and chanted, “We will bring them back.”

Israeli television stations broadcast images of the march and then the massive rally.

The movement of the prisoners' families puts pressure on the Israeli government to quickly complete a prisoner exchange deal.

The head of the Israeli National Security Council, Tzachi Hanegbi, said on Friday that there is currently no prisoner exchange agreement.

He added at a press conference in Tel Aviv: “I see a lot of reports, at this stage there is no agreement on any of the issues that are part of the discussion process.”

He added: "If such an agreement is available, it will lead to many families being able to be reunited with their loved ones," referring to Israel's demand that the agreement include a large number of Israeli prisoners.

Hanegbi continued: “The government has taken an unequivocal, unanimous decision that there will be no ceasefire without a very significant release of the abductees. We stand by that and do not compromise.”

The Israeli army says that Hamas has been detaining 239 Israelis in Gaza, both military and civilian, since October 7, when the Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Palestinian Hamas movement, stormed Israeli settlements and military sites around the Gaza Strip.

For its part, Hamas says it wants to exchange Israeli prisoners for prisoners in Israeli prisons, a ceasefire in Gaza, and the introduction of humanitarian aid to the population.

According to Palestinian sources, Israel detains more than 7,000 Palestinians in its prisons, including women, children, and the sick.