Additional pro-Israel Democrats joined colleagues on Friday in criticizing Israel’s plans to take over Gaza City, which were approved Friday after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel intends to take over Gaza City as part of an expanded military operation.

It’s a further sign that Israel’s ongoing war plans are causing growing gaps between the Jewish state and some of the country’s most critical left-of-center allies in Washington.

Rep. Brad Schneider (D-IL), a co-chair of the House Jewish caucus and pro-Israel stalwart who is currently visiting Israel, said in a statement that the plan to take over Gaza City “is tactically questionable and strategically self-defeating.”

“If implemented, the decision is more likely to play into Hamas’s original objectives in starting this war and further unite much of the world against Israel than it is to bring home the last surviving hostages and advance the security needs of the nation,” Schneider continued. “In fighting what is unquestionably an existential war against absolute evil, Israel must also uphold its responsibility to do all it can to protect civilians in Gaza and enable humanitarian aid to reach those in need.”

At the same time, he emphasized that Hamas started the war with the intent of eliminating Israel, and that Israel has the “absolute right” to defend itself and free the hostages. He said that if the world wants the war to end, it must commit to working with Israel, the U.S. and European and Arab states to “open new pathways for relief, recovery and renewal.”

Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA) warned in a statement that Israeli military officials oppose the Gaza occupation effort and that it “could extend [the war] for years, will only result in further loss of life among the hostages, Palestinian civilians, and the members of the IDF required to undertake such a calamitous task. The situation in Gaza is unendurable; this will make it worse. This war must end, not escalate.”

“To be clear: Hamas must be held to account for its mass murder, torture, and rape of Israelis, and for any diversion of food from those who are hungry. No call upon the Israeli government to act to stop this unendurable suffering by civilians in Gaza can ignore the barbaric acts committed by Hamas that brought this war about, the need to ensure they can never threaten Israel again, and the even more urgent need for the release of all of the hostages,” Schiff continued. “The international community must be persistent in its demand for the immediate release of the hostages and not ignore the casus belli of this terrible war.”

He said that the U.S.-Israel relationship should transcend any particular government on either side, and urged U.S. allies not to abandon Israel, “But that does not mean we can or should ignore or fail to call out continued perilous action — and inaction — by both this Prime Minister and this President — and insist on a dramatic change in the policies of both.”

Schiff added, “I find no shared value in the preventable starvation of the people of Gaza. I see no common principle in the forced displacement of Palestinians from Gaza or plans for settler colonies there, only a moral and legal failing of terrible proportion. I am compelled to speak out, because I believe in an Israel that has been, and can be again, a light unto other nations.”

Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) called the Gaza City plan “a dangerous and counterproductive move that will not secure the release of the remaining hostages or bring an end to the fighting that has already taken so many lives.”

“This approach will without question worsen the already terrible humanitarian conditions in Gaza, and Israel’s own military leaders have expressed serious concerns about the feasibility and risks of this strategy,” Warner continued. “The priority must be to end this war immediately through diplomatic efforts and coordinated pressure to ensure the safe return of hostages and protect innocent lives. Pursuing this path will only guarantee prolonged conflict and greater suffering.”

Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), one of Israel’s most vocal defenders in the House, took a somewhat different tack, saying in a statement and an interview on CNN that Netanyahu had told him in a meeting this week that Israel does not plan to occupy Gaza in the long term.

“I’m opposed to long-term occupation and annexation — but Hamas must go,” Gottheimer said on X. “I strongly support crushing Hamas terrorists and their last strongholds. I fervently back surging humanitarian aid and preventing Hamas from blocking it. We must urgently free the hostages being starved by Hamas, remove Hamas from power, and transition to an Arab-led peacekeeping force to bring lasting peace and safety for both innocent Palestinians and Israelis.”

He said in the CNN interview that Hamas could end the war by agreeing to surrender.

The Anti-Defamation League also voiced “significant reservations about the Israeli Cabinet’s decision to expand operations in Gaza” in a statement on Friday. The group declined to weigh in on the strategy involved but said that the move could further endanger the hostages and worsen the humanitarian situation for Palestinian civilians.

Democratic Majority for Israel said that “Pro-Israel Democrats have questions and concerns about the reported escalation of the conflict,” while emphasizing Hamas’ responsibility for the war and the need for a deal to free the hostages and increase humanitarian aid.

“We call on the Trump Administration to ensure sufficient humanitarian assistance and exert maximum pressure on Arab states such as Qatar to force Hamas to accept a ceasefire and free the hostages,” the DMFI statement continued.