Hundreds of thousands of Israelis took to the streets on Sunday to protest Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plan to expand operations in the Gaza Strip, rather than attempt to negotiate an end to the war under which Hamas would free its last hostages.

Israel is intensifying its strikes on Gaza City, the territory’s largest urban centre, as it plans to seize it.

Notably absent from this month’s government statement is any mention of genocide or the ethnic cleansing accompanying the planned takeover of the territory.

In leaked audio recordings, the former head of Israeli military intelligence can be heard saying that the deaths of tens of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza is “necessary and required for future generations.

On Sunday, relatives and friends of hostages taken by Hamas, a Palestinian militant group, on October 7, 2023, called a nationwide strike. Around 25 hostages are believed be alive in Gaza. The protests took place across Israel, some outside of politician's homes, military bases, and highways.

The Israeli military will provide Gaza residents with tents and other equipment starting from Sunday ahead of relocating them from combat zones to "safe" ones in the south of the enclave, military spokesperson Avichay Adraee said on Saturday.

Pro-Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil kicked off the rally outside the New York Public Library near Bryant Park before those in attendance started marching across Manhattan. Protesters called for an end to the Israel-Hamas war and for the United States to stop sending aid to Israel. People from across the country attended.

Palestinian residents of Gaza City have come under relentless Israeli bombardment as the military prepares for a major offensive to seize and ethnically cleanse the area, barring emergency workers from reaching people trapped in the residential Zeitoun neighbourhood.

We will agree to a deal on the condition that all the hostages are released in a single phase and in accordance with our terms for ending the war,” read a statement from Netanyahu’s