Police arrested several anti-war activists who poured buckets of red paint on the street and an adjacent wall outside the home of IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, in Hod Hasharon on Thursday, police and protesters said.

Dozens of left-wing protesters gathered earlier in the day outside the IDF chief’s home, demanding he refuse to carry out any plans to occupy the Gaza Strip as the government advances an operation to take over Gaza City.

Demonstrators held a banner with Zamir’s face that read: “You are against the occupation of Gaza, the time has come to refuse,” referencing leaked comments attributed to the IDF chief calling for Israel to instead accept a hostage-ceasefire deal with the Hamas terror group.

Before the plan to conquer Gaza City was approved, the military chief was widely said to object to government plans to take over the entire Strip, saying this would endanger the lives of the remaining hostages. This drew ire from Defense Minister Israel Katz and others in the government.

The paint symbolizes “the rivers of blood that will be spilled if Israel moves to reoccupy Gaza, endanger the hostages and kill innocents,” said the Standing Together movement in a statement. The Israeli-Palestinian shared society group said it was joined by the “Soldiers Supporting Hostages” organization.

According to police, officers from the Kfar Saba station arrested five demonstrators who “caused damage to a........

© The Times of Israel