What you need to know about the general strike declared in Israel to demand the release of hostages

A day after major protests in the country, many sectors were at a standstill on Monday. However, an Israeli court ordered the movement to stop early in the afternoon.

A strike movement began in Israel on Monday, September 2, in order to increase pressure on the government to obtain the release of hostages held in Gaza. This union action, deemed illegal by an Israeli court early this afternoon, comes a day after protests that brought together tens of thousands of Israelis in several cities, after six hostages were found dead in the Gaza Strip. Franceinfo takes stock of this general strike.

Pressure on the government

Israel’s main trade union, the Histadrut, called on Sunday for “a general strike” to force the government to reach an agreement with Hamas. “We must stop this abandonment of hostages”justified the head of the organization, Arnon Bar-David. “The entire Israeli economy will be on general strike” Monday and “The airport will be closed, takeoffs and landings will cease”according to the Histadrut. Opposition leader Yair Lapid also called for the “general strike”.

LThe movement is supported by the Hostage Families Forum, which has called for new demonstrations from 7 a.m. “The entire nation will stand with the families of the hostages to protest the government’s continued abandonment of the hostages”the collective explained on Sunday on X, calling “world leaders to put all possible pressure on Hamas to sign the agreement.” By Sunday evening, the movement had claimed half a million protesters across the country during the day, including more than 300,000 in Tel Aviv.

A strike with uneven coverage

Several major cities, such as Tel Aviv and Haifa, followed the strike call and announced the closure of municipal services. Several banks and many universities were at a standstill on Monday, according to the Israeli newspaper. HaaretzDisruptions were also recorded at Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport, where departures partially resumed in the morning after two hours of total interruption. The union call was supported by the Israel Business Forum, which brings together employees of 200 of the country’s largest companies, reports The Times of Israel.

But the movement was unevenly followed on Monday, with several municipalities, including Jerusalem, not responding to the call. In the localities participating in the movement, public transport, run by private companies, was operating at least partially. In government services, too, the walkout was unevenly followed. “There is no reception of the public today, but we are working in the offices”an Israeli social security employee told AFP on condition of anonymity.

Justice orders end of movement

In the early afternoon, the Israeli courts ordered an immediate end to the strike, which “must stop today at 2:30 p.m.” (1:30 p.m. Paris time). A labor court ruled that it “it was clear that it was a political strike”specifying that he had not found “no economic argument” in the explanations of the powerful trade union center Histadrut. On request of Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich,The court had been seized by the Israeli attorney generalwho himself had argued that the motivation for the movement was political and did not concern a collective labor dispute. The far-right minister also, for his part, ordered the Treasury’s salaries department not to pay the strikers, reports Haaretz.

The executive remains inflexible

Since Sunday, the Israeli government has shown no signs of changing course and continues to blame Hamas. “He who kills hostages does not want an agreement”reacted the Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, Sunday, in a recorded speech broadcast on X. “We will pursue you, we will catch you and we will settle the score with you”he said to the Palestinian Islamist movement and the murderers of the hostages.

National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, a figure of the radical far right, claimed on Monday to use his influence within the government “to prevent an irresponsible agreement and to stop all negotiations.” Conversely, theOne of the main opponents of Benjamin Netanyahu, his former coalition partner Benny Gantz, denounced the Prime Minister’s action and called on Israelis to “to demonstrate”Sunday, in a message posted on XThe pressure increased on Monday with a statement from US President Joe Biden, who said the Israeli leader was not doing enough to reach an agreement with Hamas.