The police pushed an anti-government demonstration away from a main traffic junction in the city using water canon and arresting some of the protestors.
The protesters continue to demand that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should resign – but not before he has signed up to a deal with Hamas to secure the release of the hostages.
There are believed to be about 132 hostages in Gaza – but it’s not clear whether some may have died in the midst of the war.
Earlier this week, Hamas said it had accepted a Qatari-Egyptian cease-fire deal that would end the war and bring about the phased release of some of the Israeli hostages held in Gaza.
Israel swiftly rejected the deal, saying it did not meet “core demands,” and hours later sent tanks to capture the Rafah crossing. Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has called Hamas’ demands for a complete Israeli troop withdrawal from Gaza “extreme.”
The war was triggered by Hamas’ attack on southern Israel on October 7 in which 1,200 people were killed and 250 were taken hostage.
Israel’s bombardment and ground offensives in Gaza have killed more than 34,800 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its figures.
Much of Gaza has been destroyed and some 80% of Gaza’s population has been driven from their homes.
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