More than 1,600 former Israeli army paratroopers and infantry soldiers have joined the band of military personnel demanding a deal to bring captives back from Gaza and end the offensive, Al Jazeera reports.

The group said they want the captives returned, “even at the cost of halting the fighting”, to save Israeli lives, according to Yedioth Ahronoth and other Israeli media.

More than 170 graduates from an elite tech leadership programme of the Military Intelligence Unit signed their names to a separate letter calling for an end to the offensive and the return of captives.

The calls are the latest among growing voices from within the military pressuring the government to end the offensive.

Air Force reservists, doctors, ex-Mossad members, navy reservists and military intelligence members have been among those signing similar letters.