Thousands rally in Tel Aviv against Netanyahu's new Gaza plan

TEL AVIV, Aug 10 (Reuters/AFP): Thousands of protesters took to the streets of Tel Aviv on Saturday night to oppose Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's plan to escalate the nearly two-year Gaza war, demanding an immediate end to the campaign and for the release of the hostages.
A day earlier, the prime minister's office said the security cabinet, a small group of senior ministers, had decided to seize Gaza City, expanding military operations in the devastated Palestinian territory despite widespread public opposition and warnings from the military the move could endanger the hostages.
"This isn't just a military decision. It could be a death sentence for the people we love most," Lishay Miran Lavi, the wife of hostage Omri Miran told the rally, pleading to US President Donald Trump to intervene to immediately end the war.
Public opinion polls show an overwhelming majority of Israelis favour an immediate end to the war to secure the release of the remaining 50 hostages held by militants in Gaza.
Gaza civil defence says
37 killed by Israeli fire
Gaza's civil defence agency said at least 37 people were killed by Israeli fire on Saturday, including 30 civilians who were waiting to collect aid.
Civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP that 12 people were killed and nearly 200 wounded when Israeli forces opened fire on them as they gathered near a border crossing in northern Gaza that has been used for aid deliveries.
Six more people were killed and 30 wounded after Israeli troops targeted civilians assembling near an aid point in central Gaza, he said.
Strikes in central Gaza also resulted in multiple casualties, according to Bassal, while a drone attack near the southern city of Khan Yunis killed at least three people and wounded several others.
Media restrictions in Gaza and difficulties accessing swathes of the territory mean AFP is unable to independently verify the tolls .
Russia condemns Israel's
Gaza City plan
Russia's foreign ministry on Saturday condemned Israel's plan to take control of Gaza City, saying it risked worsening the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip.
Implementing such plans "risks worsening the already dramatic situation in the Palestinian enclave, which shows all the signs of a humanitarian disaster", said a ministry statement.