On Tuesday, the families of hundreds of Israeli soldiers working in Gaza called on their children to lay down their weapons “immediately” and return to their homes.

This came according to a letter sent by the families to Defense Minister Yoav Galant and Army Chief of Staff Herzi Halevy, in which they criticized the Knesset (Parliament)’s decision to approve the law that is lenient with religious Jews regarding service in the army, according to the Hebrew newspaper “Haaretz.”

The newspaper said: “Hundreds of families of Israeli soldiers addressed Galant and Halevy in an open letter, in which they criticized the Knesset’s decision to approve the law that exempts religious people from serving in the army.”

It added: “They (the families) wrote that they no longer support the fighting in Gaza.”

The newspaper quoted the families from the letter saying: “We tell our soldier sons that they must stop fighting now, lay down their weapons and return to their homes immediately.”