After calling for a “general strike” in the wake of massive demonstrations following the announcement of the deaths of six hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the powerful Histadrut trade union center asked its affiliates to end the protest, early Monday afternoon, September 2. The movement had been unevenly followed, with several municipalities, including that of Jerusalem, not following the call.
The Tel Aviv Labor Court, seized by Bezalel Smotrich (far right), the finance minister in Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, ordered the immediate end of the strike at midday. The court justified its decision by saying that it “it was clear that this was a political strike”specifying that he had not found “no economic argument” in Histadrut’s explanations for the strike. Arnon Bar-David, the federation’s president, said in a statement shortly afterwards: “We live in a state of law and we respect the court’s decision. Therefore, I order everyone to return to work at 2:30 p.m.”.
Several major cities, including Tel Aviv and Haifa, followed the strike call, announcing the closure of municipal services on Monday. Disruptions were also recorded at Tel Aviv’s Ben-Gurion airport, where departures partially resumed at 10 a.m. (9 a.m. in Paris) after two hours of total interruption.
In the localities participating in the movement, public transport, run by private companies, was at least partially functioning. In government services, too, the walkout was unevenly followed. “There is no reception for the public today, but we are working in the offices”an Israeli social security employee told Agence France-Presse on condition of anonymity.
Protests continue on Monday
Meanwhile, demonstrations continued Monday in several cities to demand an agreement on the release of the hostages. According to an AFP journalist, several demonstrators were arrested in Tel Aviv while blocking traffic on a highway. These rallies had brought together several tens of thousands of people the day before.
This mobilization is part of an announcement, Sunday, by the Israeli army of the discovery of the bodies of six hostages in the Gaza Strip, the scene of a devastating war pitting Israel against the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas for almost eleven months.
« Les corps des hostages Carmel Gat, Eden Yerushalmi, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Alexander Lobanov, Almog Sarusi et Ori Danino » were found on Saturday in a “tunnel in the Rafah area”in the south of the Gaza Strip, the army had announced, arousing shock and anger in Israel.
US President Joe Biden said ” devastated “ et “indignant”while his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, expressed his “stupor” and asked “the end of the war”Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris are due to meet with US negotiators working on the release of hostages at the White House in Washington on Monday, following the deaths of six captives in Gaza, including an American citizen.
Read also | Article reserved for our subscribers The United States, horrified by the murder of six hostages held by Hamas, refuses to admit the impasse of its strategy towards Israel
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Two versions of the hostages’ deaths
At least four hostages were buried on Sunday, in the presence of their grieving relatives. “You were abandoned, every day, every hour, 331 days (…), you were sacrificed to “destroy Hamas”lamented Nira Seroussi in her eulogy for her son, Almog. She was referring to repeated statements by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has vowed to continue the war until the destruction of Hamas, an organization considered a terrorist by Israel, the United States and the European Union. Under increasing pressure to reach a deal for the hostages after months of deadlock, Mr. Netanyahu on Sunday threatened Hamas to “settle one’s score”.
Read also the report | Article reserved for our subscribers In Israel, hostage families fear their cause will be forgotten
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According to the Israeli Health Ministry, the autopsy carried out on the bodies of the six hostages reveals that they were killed “point blank” “between Thursday and Friday morning”A Hamas official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said they had been “killed by gunfire and bombing by the occupier” Israeli, some of which are part “from the list of hostages to be released that Hamas had approved”.
