After a brief hiatus following violent attacks on its members, the anti-war protest encampment in Tel Aviv—known as the Camp to Stop the War—resumed its activities this week, reflecting growing domestic unease over the government’s handling of the war in Gaza.

Discontent has begun to spread within Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s own ranks. On Saturday, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich released a video criticising the government’s war strategy and expressing a lack of confidence in Mr. Netanyahu’s leadership.

He notably distanced himself from the security cabinet’s recent decision to seize control of Gaza City, stopping short of endorsing a full re-occupation of the strip.

The Israeli security cabinet has approved a controversial plan to take Gaza City and forcibly relocate up to one million Palestinians to the south of the enclave. Critics, including families of Israeli hostages, have responded with fury.

In a press conference following the government’s announcement, the families described the cabinet as a “government of death” and called on American property magnate Steve Witkoff, reportedly involved in backchannel talks, to broker a deal for the captives’ return.

In parallel, Prime Minister Netanyahu continues to double down on military objectives. Speaking to Fox News on Thursday, he declared Israel’s intent to establish full military control over Gaza, to eventually transfer authority to “Arab forces” deemed acceptable to Israel.

While insisting that Israel does not wish to govern Gaza long term, he reiterated plans to establish a security perimeter and to exclude both Hamas and the Palestinian Authority from any future administration.

A similar message was echoed in a tweet on Friday in which he vowed to “free Gaza from Hamas” and create a demilitarized, postwar civil authority.

Meanwhile, protests have swelled in Israeli cities, including Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.

Thousands of demonstrators took to the streets on Thursday night, demanding that the government prioritise a deal to bring home the remaining captives in Gaza—a sentiment increasingly at odds with the cabinet’s hawkish trajectory.

Al Jazeera.