As the Israel-Hamas war continues, the latest round of cease-fire discussions appears to have reached an impasse.
Meanwhile, after six hostages were found dead in Gaza, protests erupted in Israel. Protesters have lashed out at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and demanded the government bring the hostages home.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reported the killing of a Hamas rocket commander in an airstrike last week.
The IDF wrote on social media on Sunday that its Southern Command "eliminated" Raef Omar Salman Abu Shab -- the commander of the rocket unit of the eastern Khan Younis Brigade -- in an airstrike on Tuesday
The commander was "responsible for launching rocket barrages from the area of Khan Younis toward southern and central Israel since the start of the war," the IDF said.
-ABC News' David Brennan
Sep 08, 2024, 6:05 AM EDT
Netanyahu links Iran, Hamas to border killings
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu opened his Sunday cabinet meeting by condemning the "despicable terrorist" that killed three Israeli police officers at the Jordanian border.
"It's a hard day," Netanyahu said. "We are surrounded by a murderous ideology led by Iran's 'Axis of Evil'. In recent days, despicable terrorists have murdered six of our abductees in cold blood and three Israeli police officers."
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends a press conference at the Government Press office in Jerusalem, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024.
Abir Sultan/AP
"The murderers do not distinguish between us, they want to murder us all, until the last one; right and left, secular and religious, Jews and non-Jews."
Referencing a recent report by German newspaper BILD detailing Hamas' reported plan to build pressure on Israel, Netanyahu said the militant group aims "to tear us apart from the inside, and to continue the war until further notice."
"The vast majority of Israeli citizens do not fall into this trap of Hamas," Netanyahu said. "They know that we are committed with all our might to achieve the goals of the war -- to eliminate Hamas, to return all our abductees, to ensure that Gaza will no longer pose a threat to Israel and to safely return our residents in the north and south to their homes."
"Some ask: 'Will you forever stand with a sword?' In the Middle East, without a sword there is no forever," Netanyahu added.
-ABC News' Jordana Miller and David Brennan
Sep 08, 2024, 5:53 AM EDT
Police officers killed in border shooting, officials say
All three men shot dead by a gunman at the Jordanian border on Sunday morning were police officers, Israel Police and the prime minister’s office have confirmed to ABC News.
The IDF said the suspect -- who was killed in a shootout -- fired at Israeli police officers manning the Allenby Bridge at the Jordanian frontier, having approached the border in a vehicle from the Jordanian side.
-ABC News’ Jordana Miller and David Brennan
Israeli security forces gather at the scene of a reported attack near the Allenby Crossing between the occupied West Bank and Jordan on September 8, 2024, where the Israeli military said a truck driver opened fire, killing three Israelis.
Ahmad Gharabli/AFP via Getty Images
Sep 08, 2024, 4:29 AM EDT
Rescued hostage to Netanyahu: 'Do the right thing'
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum touted Saturday night's pro-cease-fire protest as "Israel's largest-ever rally," reporting the attendance of "over 500,000 people in Tel Aviv and 250,000 across Israel."
Demonstrators flooded downtown Tel Aviv to again demand that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government reach a hostage-release deal with Hamas. The recent deaths of six hostages in Gaza have reinvigorated the pro-cease-fire movement in Israel and put pressure on the prime minister.
Among the speakers were two former Gaza hostages. Andrey Kozlov -- rescued from Hamas captivity by the Israel Defense Forces in July -- told marchers: "We cannot allow this disaster to keep happening, we have to demand our leaders to do whatever it takes and do the right thing."
Demonstrators set a fire during an anti-government protest in front of the Israeli Defence Ministry in Tel Aviv on September 7, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and the militant Hamas group.
Jack Guez/AFP via Getty Images
Kozlov spent two months in captivity with Alex Lobanov, who was among the six hostages recently found dead in a tunnel in the south of the strip. "We must demand our leaders to agree to this chance even if it is difficult," Kozlov said on Saturday.
"We must demand no one forgets the hostages, no one ignores them, no one leaves them to die. Their time is running out, we see it, we feel it. Bring them back home now."
Danielle Aloni -- also kidnapped on Oct. 7 -- said in her address: "The time has come for courageous decisions. A hostage deal, supported by the international community, and led by President Biden, offers the only chance for their safe return."
"This is not just Israel's responsibility; this is a global humanitarian crisis. The world must stand united to bring them home. It's not just about saving lives, it's about restoring humanity and justice. Prime Minister Netanyahu, seal the deal. Now."
-ABC News' Dana Savir, Jordana Miller and David Brennan
