By Deutsche Welle
01 Sep 2024, 22:17 PM EDT
The Histadrut trade union called on Sunday for a general strike in Israel on Monday, September 2, in support of negotiations for the release of hostages held in Gaza. This comes after the Israeli army recovered the bodies of six people inside a pipeline in Rafah.
“Starting tomorrow at 6:00 a.m., the entire Israeli economy will be at a standstill; at 8:00 a.m. the airport will be closed and takeoffs and landings will be suspended,” said Histadrut chairman Arnon bar David.
“We have to stop the abandonment of hostages,” he said after a meeting with relatives of the captives kidnapped on October 7 by Hamas, considered a terrorist organization by Israel and other countries, including Germany and the United States.
“Body bags instead of an agreement”
“We are receiving body bags instead of an agreement. I have come to the conclusion that only our intervention can shake up those who need to be shaken up,” said David.
“We need an agreement, an agreement is more important than anything else,” said the union leader, who pointed out that the negotiations are not moving forward due to “political” issues and that this is “unacceptable.”
The Israeli army announced on Sunday that it had recovered the bodies of six hostages from a tunnel in Gaza, sparking outrage among the hostages’ families who are critical of the increasingly questioned management of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose legacy hangs in the balance.
He apologizes to the family of one of the hostages
“Those who kill hostages do not want an agreement,” he said in a recorded message today, shortly before asking for “forgiveness” from the family of one of the dead hostages.
Various voices, including that of opposition leader Yair Lapid and mayors such as that of Tel Aviv, called for a general strike.
Mass demonstrations are planned for tonight – in Tel Aviv itself, Jerusalem and dozens of other locations across Israel. “Out of love for the Israeli state and society, out of genuine anxiety for our future, I will be attending the protest in Tel Aviv tonight,” said National Unity party leader Benny Gantz.
Dead hostages identified
On Saturday evening, August 31, the Israeli army found the bodies of six hostages from the Islamist group Hamas in an underground tunnel in the Rafah area, south of the Gaza Strip. The discovery, which comes amid pressure on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has sparked a wave of reactions from the international community.
The deceased hostages were identified as Carmel Gat, Eden Yerushalmi, American-Israeli Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Alexander Lobanov, Almog Sarusi and Ori Danino. They shared that they were killed by Hamas shortly before forces reached them, according to an initial investigation.
Continue reading:
- Thousands protest in Tel Aviv against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
- Hamas says some of the hostages found dead were to be released
- Who was Hersh Goldberg-Polin, the Israeli-American hostage killed in Gaza?