Jerusalem, Aug 17 (AP) Israeli police blasted crowds with water cannons and made dozens of arrests on Sunday as protesters demanding a hostage deal escalated their campaign with a one-day nationwide strike that blocked roads and closed businesses.

The “day of stoppage” was organised by two groups representing some of the families of hostages and bereaved families, weeks after militant groups released videos of emaciated hostages and Israel announced plans for a new offensive.

Protesters fear further fighting could endanger the hostages who were seized by Hamas on October 7, 2023 — the attack that triggered the war — and are believed to still be alive in captivity. Israel believes that some 20 are still alive, with Hamas holding the remains of about 30 others.

“We don't win a war over the bodies of hostages," protesters chanted.

They gathered at dozens of points throughout Israel, including outside politicians' homes, military headquarters and on major highways, where they were sprayed with water cannons as they blocked lanes and lit bonfires. Some restaurants and theatres closed in solidarity.

In Tel Aviv, among the protesters was a woman carrying a photo of an emaciated child from Gaza. Such images were once rare at Israeli demonstrations, but now appear more often as outrage grows over conditions there.

Police said they had arrested 38 people as part of the nationwide demonstration — one of the fiercest since the uproar over six hostages found dead in Gaza last September.

“Military pressure doesn't bring hostages back — it only kills them,” former hostage Arbel Yehoud said at a demonstration in Tel Aviv's hostage square. “The only way to bring them back is through a deal, all at once, without games.” Netanyahu and allies oppose any deal that leaves Hamas in power.

“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.” Protesters at highway intersections handed out yellow ribbons, the symbol that represents the hostages, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, which organised the stoppage, said.

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.

“Those who today call for an end to the war without defeating Hamas are not only hardening Hamas's position and delaying the release of our hostages, they are also ensuring that the horrors of Oct. 7 will be repeated," Netanyahu said on Sunday, in an apparent reference to the demonstrations.

The last time Israel agreed to a ceasefire that released hostages, far-right members of his cabinet threatened to topple 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 jeopardise its security and future.” 'No other option' Hospitals and eyewitnesses in Gaza reported at least 17 aid-seekers had been killed by Israeli forces on Sunday, including nine awaiting aid trucks close to the Morag corridor.

Hamza Asfour, an aid-seeker, said he was just north of the corridor awaiting a convoy when Israeli snipers fired, first to disperse the crowds, then from tanks hundreds of meters (yards) away.

He saw two people with gunshot wounds — one in the chest and the other in the shoulder.

“It's either to take this risk or wait and see my family die of starvation,” he said. “There is no other option.” In response to questions about deaths the hospital reported from two incidents near its sites, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which runs the distribution points, said there was no gunfire Sunday “at or near” its sites, which are located in military-controlled areas.

Israel's military did not immediately respond to questions about strikes in the three areas.

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 more than 61,900 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.

On Sunday, two children died of malnutrition-related causes in Gaza, bringing the total over the last 24 hours to seven, according to the ministry, which 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. Israel disputes its figures but has not provided its own.

Aid flow is far below what is needed.

While demonstrators in Israel demanded a ceasefire, Israel began preparing for an invasion of Gaza City and other populated parts of the besieged strip, aimed at destroying Hamas.

The military body that coordinates its humanitarian aid to Gaza said Sunday that the supply of tents to the territory would resume. COGAT said it would allow the United Nations to resume importing tents and shelter equipment into Gaza ahead of plans to forcibly evacuate people from combat zones “for their protection.” The majority of assistance has been blocked from entering Gaza since Israel imposed a total blockade in March after a ceasefire collapsed when Israel restarted its offensive. 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.

Airstrike on a power plant in Yemen Israeli airstrikes hit Yemen's capital on Sunday, escalating strikes on Iran-backed Houthis, who, since the war began, have fired missiles at Israel and targeted ships in the Red Sea.

The Houthi-run Al-Masirah Television said the strikes targeted a power plant in the southern district of Sanhan, sparking a fire and knocking it out of service. Israel's military acknowledged Sunday's strikes, saying they were launched in response to missiles and drones aimed at Israel.

While some projectiles have breached its missile defences — notably during its 12-day war with Iran in June — Israel has intercepted the vast majority of missiles launched from Yemen. (AP) SKS RD RD