Israel will call up around 50,000 reservists for its new Gaza City offensive, and call-up letters will be sent out as soon as the coming days, an Israeli military official said on Wednesday, adding that the reservists' draft will begin in September.

Hundreds of thousands of Israelis took to the streets on Sunday to protest Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plan to expand operations in the Gaza Strip, rather than attempt to negotiate an end to the war under which Hamas would free its last hostages.