Thousands rally in Tel Aviv against Israel’s plan to take over Gaza – SUCH TV

Thousands gathered in Tel Aviv on Saturday, demanding an end to the war in Gaza, just a day after the Israeli government announced plans to escalate the conflict and seize Gaza City.

Protesters carried placards and photos of hostages still held in Gaza, urging the government to prioritize their release.

According to the Times of Israel, speakers at the rally called on soldiers to refuse deployment to Gaza and appealed to opposition leaders, as well as business, labor, and academic figures, to bring the country to a standstill in protest.

One mother of a combat officer said soldiers are being physically and mentally drained, lacking adequate protective gear.

She warned that the Gaza City takeover plan “puts Israel on a guaranteed path to a never-ending war, risking the lives of the hostages, hundreds of soldiers, and the nation’s global standing.”

“Don’t agree to enter Gaza,” she says. “Refuse to participate in an overtly illegal war.”

Russia condemns Israel’s Gaza City occupation plan

Russia’s foreign ministry on Saturday condemned Israel’s plan to take control of Gaza City, saying it risked worsening the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip.

Implementing such plans “risks worsening the already dramatic situation in the Palestinian enclave, which shows all the signs of a humanitarian disaster”, said a ministry statement.

Gaza’s civil defence agency said at least 34 people were killed by Israeli fire on Saturday, including more than a dozen civilians who were waiting to collect aid.

Civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP nine people were killed and 181 wounded when Israeli forces opened fire on them as they gathered near a border crossing in northern Gaza that has been used for aid deliveries.

Six more people were killed and 30 wounded after Israeli troops targeted civilians assembling near an aid point in central Gaza, he said.

Strikes in central Gaza also resulted in multiple casualties, according to Bassal, while a drone attack near the southern city of Khan Yunis killed at least three people and wounded several others.

Thousands of Palestinians congregate daily near food distribution points in Gaza, including four managed by the US- and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.

Since launching in late May, its operations have been marred by almost-daily reports of Israeli forces firing on those waiting to collect aid.

Israeli restrictions on the entry of supplies into Gaza since the start of the war nearly two years ago have led to shortages of food and essential supplies, including medicine and fuel, which hospitals require to power their generators.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces mounting pressure to agree to a ceasefire to bring the territory’s more than two million people back from the brink of famine and free the hostages held by Palestinian militants.