ISRAELI protesters pledged to hound Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from office today, blocking major roads as the savage war in Gaza raged on.

It was a day of chaos and mixed messages in Tel Aviv, with an army announcement of daytime “pauses” to allow humanitarian aid into Gaza apparently taking Mr Netanyahu and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant by surprise.

National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir reacted furiously, ordering police not to interfere with rioters who attack aid convoys, and the Israeli Defence Forces later clarified that the 8am to 7pm pauses would apply only to a particular road north from the Kerem Shalom Gaza-Israel crossing point and the attacks on southern Gaza and Rafah would continue.

Eight Israeli soldiers were killed in Rafah on Saturday in one of the deadliest single episodes for its army of the war so far, and political rows consumed the Knesset after ministers raised the age limit for reservists to report for duty.

Opposition leader Yair Lapid said the law was discriminatory as the government has not tackled exemptions allowing Orthodox Jews to evade conscription. “The reservists and taxpayers are collapsing, and Netanyahu and the extremists put the burden on them,” he said.

Protesters plan to rally at the Knesset tomorrow and march on Mr Netanyahu’s residence  to demand a ceasefire, a deal to free hostages taken in the Hamas attack of October 7 and new elections.

“Only elections can start the healing process,” protest organiser Moshe Radman said.

Gaza’s Health Ministry said today the Palestinian death toll from the eight-month war is now 37,337.