Municipal services in several Israeli districts were disrupted and some services at the main air hub were suspended on Monday after the country's biggest labor union launched a general strike to pressure Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu into agreeing to a hostage exchange deal.
The head of the Histadrut union, which represents hundreds of thousands of workers across the economy, called for the strike on Sunday after the bodies of six hostages were recovered in a tunnel in southern Gaza.
The reported death of six hostages triggered deep shock in Israel, prompting at least half a million people to take to the streets in west Jerusalem and Tel Aviv in protest on Sunday.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich sought to have the strike call dismissed by Israel's Labor Court, which was due to meet midmorning but numerous sectors were affected by the strike call, which was also backed by many employer groups including manufacturers and the high-tech sector.
Some services at Ben Gurion Airport, Israel's main air transport hub, were suspended, although incoming flights were still landing while bus and light rail services in many areas were either canceled or only partially functioning.
Workers at Israel's main commercial port Haifa were also on strike.
Hospitals were only partially operating and banks were not working but many private sector businesses were open. However, employers were allowing staff to join the strike so many services were disrupted.
The strikes follow months of protests by families representing some of the hostages and underscore the deep divisions that have opened up in Israel over Netanyahu's approach to securing a cease-fire deal.
Despite pressure from his own defense minister as well as senior generals and intelligence officials, Netanyahu has insisted on maintaining Israeli troops in key points of the Gaza Strip after any cease-fire.
Hamas has rejected any Israeli presence and despite the efforts of Egyptian and Qatari diplomats and repeated visits to the region by senior U.S. officials urging a deal, there has been no sign of a breakthrough in talks so far.
Pressure has been mounting to secure a deal and rescue the remaining hostages while the humanitarian crisis in Gaza escalated further and brought to the first polio case in years.
Israel's genocidal war on Gaza was triggered by the Oct. 7 Hamas incursion, which caused around 1,200 deaths and took about 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
Since then, Israel's brutal offensive has killed at least 40,738 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and leveled much of the enclave of 2.3 million people. Displaced people are living in dire conditions with inadequate shelter and a hunger crisis.
