Key takeaways:
- The Histadrut, Israel’s largest trade union group, called for its 800,000 members in health, transit, banking, and other fields to stop work.
- Departing flights from the country’s main international airport were grounded, large mall chains and universities shut their doors.
- The strike is expected to cause major disruptions throughout the country, and the Histadrut has urged the government to “return to the path of dialogue and understanding” in order to resolve the crisis.
Israel is facing a major political crisis as the country’s largest trade union announced a “historic” strike on Monday, shutting down transportation, universities, restaurants, and retailers in protest of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s planned judicial overhaul.
Departing flights from the country’s main international airport were grounded, large mall chains and universities shut their doors, and the Histadrut, Israel’s largest trade union group, called for its 800,000 members in health, transit, banking, and other fields to stop work.
The strikes were announced following Netanyahu’s decision on Sunday to fire his Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, who became the first member of the cabinet to call for the prime minister’s resignation due to his indictment on corruption charges.
Workers at the country’s largest port in Haifa stopped working, some universities were shuttered, and some of the country’s best-known retailers, including McDonald’s and the shopping mall chain Azrieli Group, announced closures. Passengers at Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv were left looking at the monitors displaying delayed flights.
The strike is expected to cause major disruptions throughout the country, and the Histadrut has urged the government to “return to the path of dialogue and understanding” in order to resolve the crisis. It remains to be seen how long the strike will last and what impact it will have on the country.
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