Thousands of Israelis demonstrated on Monday in front of the Knesset building in West Jerusalem, demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government and the holding of early elections.

After a 40-day recess, the Knesset (Parliament) resumed work for the summer parliamentary session, which will continue until late next July.

The official Hebrew Broadcasting Corporation said: “Thousands demonstrated on Kaplan Street in Jerusalem, near the Knesset, to demand the government’s resignation and elections to be held now.”

It added: “Activists and members of the bereaved families are now speaking on the podium,” noting that “it is expected that a march will later head towards Gaza Street (where Netanyahu’s residence is located), and there will be another march to block Begin Road,” referring to the highway that connects Between northern and southern Israel via West Jerusalem.

For its part, the Hebrew "Walla" news website said that the Israeli police intensified its forces to secure the demonstrators and prevent the blocking of traffic roads.

The “Free in Our Country” protest movement said in a statement, “A society that wants life and a future must ensure that the Knesset session that opens today will be the last session of the current Knesset,” according to the same source.

It added, "This government is harming the security of the country and its citizens for the sake of political survival. We will intensify the struggle until a date is set for the elections, and we call on all the masses to participate in the protest movements and return to the streets."

Recently, demonstrators escalated their protests to pressure the government to reach an agreement with the Hamas movement, especially with the latter announcing its approval of the mediators’ proposal to exchange detainees and ceasefire in stages, while Israel had reservations about the proposal.