Israeli protesters clash with police in Tel Aviv
Dozens of Israeli protesters have clashed with police in the central Israeli community of Mazor ahead of a visit by Netanyahu and his wife, Sarah.
Videos of the protest showed demonstrators expressing anger with Netanyahu’s pledge to continue the war on Gaza, and demanding the release of the remaining 59 captives held in the territory.
They carried signs and chanted slogans, accusing Netanyahu of prolonging a war they believe has achieved nothing but destruction.
Tensions flared as protesters pushed against police barricades, with some attempting to breach a makeshift gate.
Smotrich reiterates call for Israel’s military to occupy Gaza
The far-right finance minister has hailed Netanyahu’s pledge to continue the war on Gaza.
“Netanyahu’s statement that the war must end in victory means that the style of warfare must be changed and the approach must be to occupy the entire Gaza,” Bezalel Smotrich said in a statement on X.
“We must not be afraid of establishing military administration in Gaza if necessary and destroying Hamas to ensure that Gaza does not pose a threat to our country. This is the way to ensure security and this is the way to return the kidnapped quickly,” he added.
More from Netanyahu
The Israeli prime minister has issued a video address, saying he has ordered the country’s military to intensify the war on Gaza.
Here’s more of what he said:
- “I have ordered the [Israeli military] to respond firmly and further increase the pressure on Hamas.”
- “From the very beginning of the war, we have heard calls for it to end – for it to end in surrender, and these calls have intensified recently. If I had given in to these calls, we would not have entered Rafah, we would not have occupied the Philadelphia [Corridor], we would not have carried out Operation Beeper, we would not have eliminated [Hamas Political Bureau chief Yahya] Sinwar, [Hamas military leader] Mohammed] Deif, [Hamas Political Bureau head Ismail] Haniya and even [Hezbollah leader Hassan] Nasrallah, we would not have created the conditions for the fall of the [Syrian President Bashar al-]Assad regime and the severe blow to Iran’s axis, and we would not have changed the face of the Middle East.”
- “This weekend, Hamas again rejected an offer, an offer that could have led to the release of half of the living hostages still in Gaza and the return of many dead. Hamas demands an end to the war and the leaving of its rule intact. It also demands a complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, and the reconstruction of Gaza with the introduction of capital that will allow it to rearm and prepare attacks on us again.”
- “Ending the war on these surrender terms would send a message to all of Israel’s enemies that by kidnapping Israelis, the State of Israel can be brought to its knees.”
- “Under these conditions, [US] President [Donald] Trump’s important vision will also not be realised – the vision that will change the face of Gaza once and for all, and allow our country to live in security.”
More open calls for genocide and ethnic cleansing
