Key Points

The day of strikes and nationwide protests came on Sunday amid mounting public anger over government plans to launch a new offensive in the devastated Palestinian territory.

Critics fear the operation, aimed at seizing Gaza City and central Gaza, could endanger the 49 hostages still held there, Xinhua news agency reported.

The Hostages and Missing Families Forum, which organised the demonstrations, said that hundreds of thousands participated in rallies at more than 300 locations across the country.

In Tel Aviv, streets were cleared as many businesses, including local branches of Microsoft, Meta, and Fiverr, shuttered in solidarity with the protest.

Demonstrators blocked highways, including the main road to Jerusalem, set tyres on fire, and disrupted transportation.

Protesters carried Israeli flags alongside yellow banners symbolising the hostage struggle, chanting slogans and banging drums.

"The conquest of Gaza = death sentence for the hostages," read one placard.

"We don't win a war over the bodies of hostages," protesters chanted.

Police reported using water cannons to disperse some gatherings and arrested at least 38 people.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, a far-right Minister, condemned the protests as a "perverse and harmful campaign that plays into Hamas's hands".

Smotrich said pressure for a deal would "bury the hostages in tunnels" and force Israel to "surrender to its enemies".

In contrast, former hostage Gadi Moses told demonstrators that "the path of war will not lead to any solution".

He rejected calls to "eliminate Hamas", warning that another group would always emerge.

Moses urged leaders to adopt "a rational plan that will bring benefit to the Palestinian people and ensure prosperity and security for us".

Moses called for Israelis to move past revenge for the Hamas assault on October 7, 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 250 abducted, according to Israeli tallies.

"We need an agreement that will satisfy both sides, so neither will be afraid," he said.

In response to the attack, Israel launched a massive assault that destroyed much of Gaza.

Israeli strikes and gunfire have killed at least 61,944 people, according to Gaza health authorities.

As night fell, protesters marched toward Tel Aviv's Hostage Square, chanting for a deal to end the war.

State-owned Kan TV news reported that tens of thousands attended the march.

Haggai Angrest, father of captive soldier Matan Angrest, addressed the crowd.

"This is only the opening shot; we will not stop," he said.

"Prime Minister, look at us -- we are determined, we will not stop turning the whole country upside down until the hostages are here."

The prospects for an agreement remain dim.

Netanyahu faces pressure from the public to bring the hostages home while his far-right allies push to continue the war and rebuild settlements in Gaza.

At the start of his weekly Cabinet meeting, Netanyahu dismissed calls to halt the fighting, saying those who advocate for an end to the war "are hardening Hamas's stance and pushing off the release of our hostages".

- IANS