Israeli Workers Stage Nationwide Strike Amid Protests Against Netanyahu

A nationwide strike was launched by Israeli workers from a variety of sectors in Israel on Monday, threatening to disrupt the economy, as they joined a growing protest movement against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plan to overhaul the judiciary. Large mall chains, universities, and departing flights from the country’s main international airport were closed, and Israel’s largest trade union group called on its 800,000 members, who work in fields including health, transit, and banking, to stop work. The main doctors union also announced that its members would walk off the job, and local governments were expected to close the preschools they run and reduce other services. The overhaul was driven by Netanyahu, who is on trial for corruption, and his allies in Israel’s most right-wing government ever, and it has plunged Israel into one of its worst domestic crises. The move has sparked sustained protests that have galvanized nearly all sectors of society, including its military, where reservists have increasingly come out publicly to say they will not serve a country veering toward autocracy. At the heart of the crisis is Netanyahu himself, Israel’s longest-serving leader, and questions about the lengths he may be willing to go to maintain his grip on power, even as he battles charges of fraud, breach of trust, and accepting bribes in three separate affairs.

 

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