Yemen's Houthi group on Friday organized a large-scale protest in a public square, south of the capital Sanaa, strongly condemning the Israeli security cabinet's approval of a plan for the military to "take over Gaza City."
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said Friday in a statement that the Security Cabinet has approved a plan to take over the Gaza City, and that the Israel Defense Forces will prepare for the takeover while distributing humanitarian assistance to civilians outside the combat zones.
Protesters asserted that Israel's plan to seize control of Gaza City amounts to an indirect occupation of the Gaza Strip, particularly the city itself.
"Undoubtedly, this is not the first time Israel has issued such threats, attempting to reoccupy Gaza and crush the resistance. But over the past 22 months, the resistance has demonstrated resilience, persistence, and a powerful counterstrike capability - key factors in this battle," said an official of the Houthi group.
Meanwhile, several Houthi leaders declared that protests against Israel will continue, along with missile and drone attacks targeting Israel.
Over the past week, the group has carried out 14 military operations against Israel and vowed to strike ships engaged in trade with Israel. They emphasized that these actions will only cease once Israel completely ends its war on Gaza.
Yemen's Houthis hold mass rally against Israel's plan to take over Gaza City
A Japanese lawmaker has raised concerns over Japan's push to expand its military and its nuclear policy.
Responding to some politicians' dangerous tendency towards possessing nuclear weapons, Takara Sachika, a member of Japan's House of Councilors, said that Japan's push to strengthen its military, combined with what she called a misguided nuclear policy, not only heightens regional tensions but also directly threatens regional security.
"I think this is completely unacceptable. Japan is a country that has suffered atomic bombings and is one of the nations most aware of the threat posed by nuclear weapons. Yet such a country is openly discussing the issue of possessing nuclear weapons and even attempting to revise the principle of not allowing the introduction of nuclear weapons, one of the Three Non-Nuclear Principles. This is an extremely serious problem," Takara said.
Takara said the Japanese government's tendency to expand its military capabilities is completely contrary to the Constitution.
"From the perspective of Japan's Constitution, Japan should never have adopted a policy of ensuring security by strengthening military capabilities. Yet today, enormous effort is being poured into military expansion, and that in itself is a serious problem," said the lawmaker.
At a Diet meeting in early November 2025, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said that what she described as the Chinese central authorities' "use of force on Taiwan" could constitute a "survival-threatening situation" for Japan, and suggested the possibility of armed intervention in the Taiwan Strait, drawing strong criticism worldwide.
Takara urged Takaichi to retract her erroneous remarks as soon as possible.
"I think there is a very big problem with making such remarks that provoke other countries. It is necessary to thoroughly examine the facts as soon as possible and withdraw the relevant remarks," she said.
Japanese lawmaker criticizes nuclear weapons remarks as threat to regional security
