Carrying photos of starving kids, thousands rally in Tel Aviv, Haifa to demand end to Gaza war

Thousands have staged a protest in Tel Aviv against Israel’s genocidal war on the Gaza Strip, carrying photos of starving Palestinian children.

The protesters gathered in Tel Aviv’s Habima Square and adjacent streets on Thursday, demanding an “end to the war and return” of Israeli captives held in Gaza.

Some of them carried signs which denounced Israel for war crimes and genocide in Gaza and urged soldiers to refuse to take part in the war.

Others were seen holding up photos of starving Palestinian children, with one sign saying, “Oppose crimes against humanity.”

In Haifa, police arrested 24 protesters at an anti-war demonstration in the city’s German Colony. Officers were filmed attempting to disperse the demonstrators while tearing up signs only a few minutes after the protest began.

Later on, officers started tackling protesters to the ground, handcuffing them and carrying them to a police van.

In a video from the site of the protest, one handcuffed demonstrator is seen shouting to reporters that officers had beaten several female protesters inside the van, before she herself is pushed into a police car.

The protest was one of several anti-war demonstrations organized by Haifa’s Arab residents amid the ongoing genocide in Gaza, which often sees mass arrests.

Israel launched a genocidal war on Gaza on October 7, 2023 which has so far killed at least 59,587 Palestinians, mostly women and children.

Critics have increasingly slammed Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu for what they describe as a pattern of prioritizing his personal political survival amid an ongoing corruption probe to prolong the war on Gaza.

Since the beginning of the war in Gaza, Netanyahu has faced growing domestic and international criticism for resisting meaningful concessions in negotiations, especially those involving a ceasefire or prisoner exchange.

The continuation of military aggression in Gaza—despite calls from international allies and domestic critics to shift focus toward diplomacy and de-escalation—has been linked to his desire to project strength and placate coalition hardliners.

However, a retired Israeli major general openly admitted this week to Israel’s military weaknesses and strategic setbacks as the regime remains stuck in Gaza amid ongoing clashes with Hamas resistance fighters.

Major General Yitzhak Brik, a former senior officer of the Israeli military, wrote in an op-ed for the Israeli news website Arutz Sheva, “The painful truth, as reflected by senior officers—from generals to company commanders speaking off the record—is that Israel was not prepared for the ‘Iron Swords’ war.”

Brik continued, “The Israeli regime has already suffered a strategic loss in its campaign against Hamas.”

Polls in recent months have also shown a significant drop in Netanyahu’s approval ratings. Large-scale protests, including from bereaved families and military reservists, have become a weekly occurrence.

Many settlers now openly accuse Netanyahu of holding captives hostage to his political ambitions, with slogans like “Bring them home now!” and “Bibi is the problem, not the solution” echoing across Tel Aviv and al-Quds.

Brik also criticized Israel’s leadership, warning, “While Israel remains bogged down in the Gaza Strip, its leadership is failing to prepare the military for the next and potentially far more dangerous conflict.”