Monday Briefing: Israeli Anger at Netanyahu Grows

An Israeli delegation was scheduled to arrive in Cairo yesterday to participate in talks for a cease-fire, a senior Israeli official said. In Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, thousands took to the streets on consecutive days to protest Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu.

Protesters outside the Israeli Parliament in Jerusalem yesterday called for early elections in one of the most significant demonstrations against Netanyahu’s government since the start of the war. On Saturday, thousands in Tel Aviv held a separate anti-government protest. Netanyahu is facing mounting anger from citizens who believe he has put his political survival ahead of their broader interests. The backlash came as he was scheduled to have surgery for a hernia last night.

A senior official said that Israel’s war cabinet would convene to discuss issues related to the talks, including the question of displaced Palestinians returning to their homes in northern Gaza. In an interview, a senior Hamas official said Israel was refusing to allow Gazans to go back to the north en masse.

Humanitarian officials are warning that only a cease-fire in the monthslong conflict would allow enough aid into Gaza to avert a looming famine. Aid has remained at a trickle, despite the International Court of Justice ordering Israel to allow deliveries to continue “unhindered.” Israel’s Foreign Ministry responded by saying that great lengths had been taken to facilitate the flow of aid.

A Times photographer went along on a Gaza aid airdrop. This is what he saw.

Vatican: In an annual message during Easter Sunday Mass, Pope Francis called for “an immediate cease-fire.”