Half a million people protest against government in Israel

Hundreds of thousands of Israelis protested across the country on Saturday for the eighth consecutive night with some clashes reported with the police. The demonstrations were ignited on Sunday last week after the bodies of six captives were recovered from the Gaza Strip.

In Tel Aviv, the main site of the protests, organisers reported that over 500,000 people participated. Other significant demonstrations took place in Jerusalem, Haifa, Be’er Sheva, and near Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s private residence in Caesarea.

Earlier on Saturday Israel’s far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich expressed opposition to a captives-ceasefire deal, even if it allows Israel to maintain a presence on the Egyptian-Gaza border.

Smotrich clarified that he seeks “a deal of surrender,” but not one where Israel surrenders by leaving Gaza. Instead, he envisions a scenario where Hamas is forced to disarm and is expelled from Gaza, paving the way for a demilitarised Gaza to be rehabilitated. He has previously advocated for Israel to regain full control of Gaza and restore Jewish settlements there.