A general strike shut down much of Israel on Monday as Benjamin Netanyahu’s government faced growing anger at its failure to secure the release of hostages held by Hamas after the deaths of six captives in Gaza at the weekend.
The strike represents one of the biggest expressions of public anger at the prime minister’s handling of the war since Hamas’s attack on October 7 last year and is the first widespread industrial action.
Thousands of Israelis also poured on to the streets for a second day to block main roads, with larger protests planned for later in the evening. Histadrut, the country’s largest trade union federation, called the general strike in an attempt to push Netanyahu to agree a deal for the return of the last 101 hostages held in Gaza.