A very sad scene unfolded outside a Likud party event in Netanya on Wednesday.

Eli Albag, whose daughter Liri is still being held hostage by Hamas, was there to protest as he’s done countless times before. Instead of receiving the sympathy he deserved, Eli got an egg to his face and a barrage of insults from party supporters.

“You’ve made enough noise, be quiet,” one attacker snapped at Eli in footage now going viral. Others piled on, accusing him of being funded by Hamas and calling him a “cancer in the country.”

In an interview afterward, a visibly shaken Albag told Kan public broadcaster, “It’s one thing to throw at me, I’m used to it… I have very thick skin. But why throw eggs at the police? That disturbed me more.”

How Eli could be more upset about the disrespect to law enforcement than his own assault speaks volumes about what the poor father has endured.

Needless to say, the political fallout was swift. Opposition leader Yair Lapid demanded Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “denounce and eject those responsible from the party, and apologize to Eli Albag.” Even some far-right Likud members, such as MK Eli Dallal, scrambled to distance themselves from the egg-throwers.

Tensions have been brewing for months between Netanyahu’s government and the families of Oct. 7 hostages. Just this past Saturday night, tens of thousands of Israelis demonstrated in Tel Aviv and all across Israel in protest of the government’s mishandling of the hostage situation.

With the anniversary of Oct. 7 fast approaching and no end to the war in sight, some families are pushing hard for a deal, any deal, to bring their loved ones home. However, there is growing doubt about the likelihood of reaching an agreement as Israel’s military operations shift focus to Hezbollah in the north and the absence of meaningful hostage negotiations in Doha.

Remember the overwhelming sense of national unity following October 7, the shared grief and determination?

That spirit now lies shattered on the streets of Netanya alongside those eggshells.