Hundreds gathered in Tel Aviv and some other Israeli cities to protest the war in the Middle East, in unauthorised demonstrations that security forces sought to disperse.

Police said 13 people were arrested in the city.

In Tel Aviv, AFP journalists reported that security forces pushed back some demonstrators forcefully, knocking several to the ground while at least one protester was held in a chokehold.

AFP footage showed law enforcement officers removing demonstrators in Tel Aviv. Similar scenes were filmed by activists in the northern city of Haifa.

Numbers now appear to be rising, though they are far from the tens of thousands who filled the streets last year to protest the war in Gaza.

A number of former parliamentarians and prominent left-wing organisations joined yesterday’s rallies, including Standing Together, Peace Now and Women Wage Peace.