Israel vs. Netanyahu: Strike Begins
The country at a standstill after six hostages were killed in the hands of Hamas since October 7, 2023, U.S., Egypt and Qatar say last chance for truce
Israel vs. Benjamin Netanyahu: the country is at a standstill with growing protests that have intensified in the last few hours after the bodies of six hostages killed by Hamas were found. Public opinion is becoming increasingly dissatisfied with the way the government is conducting the war.
A general strike has been declared in the country: demonstrators, as reported by the Italian news agency ANSA, blocked Ibn Gvirol Street in Tel Aviv and other routes of communication in the country, demanding the closure of the agreement leading to the release of hostages still in the hands of Hamas
The Histadrut union, one of Israel’s most powerful, called for a one-day strike that began at 6:00 in the morning (local time, GMT+3) on September 2. State and local government offices are closed, schools are closed, and many private companies have also pulled down their shutters. Tel Aviv’s Ben-Gurion International Airport is also closed.
On September 1, numerous demonstrations took place across the country, resulting in at least 30 arrests and several injuries. Demonstrators blocked the Ayalon highway in Tel Aviv after protests organized by the families of the six victims.
Israeli public opinion, backed by scientific analysis that showed that the murdered hostages were alive just two days earlier, is convinced that the blame lies with the prime minister and the most extremist ministers, who during the negotiations gave up nothing, despite the Israeli hostages that had to be taken home. According to Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera, “Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Carmel Gat, Eden Yerushalmi were on the list of the first to return home, names given by Hamas as early as July 2.”
Hamas, for its part, emphasized that the six dead were killed because Netanyahu did not accept the truce, while the Islamist movement showed “flexibility,” as Khalil al-Haya, vice president of Hamas’s political office, explains to Al Jazeera. The movement reiterates that there will be no agreement without a withdrawal from the Netsarim and Filadelfia corridors.
Meanwhile, the USA, Egypt, and Qatar continue to discuss an agreement, which according to international media reports will be as follows: “Take it or leave it.”
In any case, Israel is also divided within the emergency cabinet, as Defense Minister Yoah Gallant called an emergency cabinet meeting to reverse Friday’s decision: “The rest can still be brought home,” but so far, the hawks’ line has prevailed.
