More than 30 Israelis arrested during mass protests as IDF prepares to displace Palestinians from Gaza City

Israel ramped up attacks on the city in recent days as its military prepares to move Palestinians living in the enclave into a "humanitarian city" on the ruins of Rafah.

Cogat, the military body that co-ordinates Israel's humanitarian aid to Gaza, said on Sunday that the supply of tents to the territory would also resume.

The organisation said it would allow the United Nations to re-start the importation of tents and shelter equipment into Gaza ahead of plans to forcibly evacuate people from combat zones "for their protection".

It comes as thousands of Israelis held anti-war protests across the country, demanding their government ends the war.

Social media posts show thousands taking to the streets as part of the escalating protests on Sunday.

More than 30 people have so far been arrested across Israel, with one strike seen to disrupt traffic and close businesses.

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Tents and the majority of assistance has been blocked from entering Gaza since Israel imposed a total blockade in March after a ceasefire collapsed.

Deliveries have since partially resumed, though aid organisations say the flow is far below what is needed. Some have accused Israel of "weaponising aid" through blockades and rules they say turn humanitarian assistance into a tool of its political and military goals.

These plans, which eventually aim to have all of Gaza’s almost two million people living in the tiny zone, have been likened to a ‘concentration camp’, including by former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.

But Israel announced on Saturday that it is going ahead with the plans, as its military prepares for a military offensive in some of the territory's most populated areas.

The military said it had no comment on when the mass movement of Palestinians would begin, but Defence Minister Israel Katz said on social media that "we are now in the stage of discussions to finalise the plan to defeat Hamas in Gaza".

The Palestinian Health Ministry said that 11 more people, including children, have died of starvation amid Israel's aid blockade, taking the total death toll from hunger to 251. The victims include 108 children.

The action across Israel, organised by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, marked a fresh push, weeks after militant groups released videos of hostages and Israel signalled plans for a new Gaza offensive.

Protesters fear further fighting could endanger the 50 hostages believed to remain in Gaza, only about 20 of whom are thought to be alive.

They chanted, "We don't win a war over the bodies of hostages" and demanded a deal.

"Today, we stop everything to save and bring back the hostages and soldiers. Today, we stop everything to remember the supreme value of the sanctity of life," said Anat Angrest, mother of hostage Matan Angrest.

"Today, we stop everything to join hands - right, left, centre and everything in between."

Although Israel's largest labor union, Histadrut, ultimately did not join Sunday's action, strikes of this magnitude are relatively rare in Israel. Many businesses and municipalities decided independently to strike.

Still, an end to the conflict does not appear near. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has demanded the immediate release of the hostages but is balancing competing pressures, haunted by the potential for mutiny within his coalition.

Far-right members of his cabinet insist they will not support any deal that allows Hamas to retain power. The last time Israel agreed to a ceasefire that released hostages, they threatened to topple Mr Netanyahu's government.

Finance minister Bezalel Smotrich on Sunday called the stoppage "a bad and harmful campaign that plays into Hamas' hands, buries the hostages in the tunnels and attempts to get Israel to surrender to its enemies and jeopardize its security and future."

Israel's air and ground war has already killed tens of thousands of people in Gaza and displaced most of the population. The United Nations is warning that levels of starvation and malnutrition in Gaza are at their highest since the war began.

The Hamas-led attack in 2023 killed around 1,200 people in Israel. Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed 61,897 people in Gaza, according to the Health Ministry, which does not specify how many were fighters or civilians but says around half were women and children.

The ministry is part of the Hamas-run government and staffed by medical professionals. The UN and independent experts consider it the most reliable source on casualties.