A general strike in Israel to protest the failure to return hostages held in Gaza led to closures and other disruptions around the country on Monday, but it was ignored in some areas, reflecting deep political divisions.
Hundreds of thousands of Israelis poured into the streets Sunday in grief and anger after six hostages were found dead in Gaza. The families and much of the public blamed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying they could have been returned alive in a deal with Hamas to end the nearly 11-month-old war.
But others support Netanyahu’s strategy of maintaining military pressure on Hamas, whose Oct. 7 attack into Israel triggered the war. They say it will force the militants to give in to Israeli demands and ultimately annihilate the group.
Israel’s largest trade union, the Histadrut, called for the general strike, the first since the start of the war. It aimed to shut down or disrupt major sectors of the economy, including banking, health care and the country’s main airport. But it ended early after a labor court ruled it must stop in mid-afternoon in response to a government petition calling the strike politically motivated.
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A rare general strike in Israel is ending after a labor court ruled that it must stop by 2:30 p.m. local time. The court accepted a petition from the government saying it was politically motivated.
The head of Israel’s largest trade union, the Histadrut, says it will abide by the court decision and has instructed members to return to work. Arnon Bar-David had called for the general strike, the first since the start of the war, as Israelis shared grief and anger over the discovery of six dead hostages in Gaza.
The strike aimed to shut down or disrupt major sectors of the economy, including banking and health care. Municipalities in Israel’s populated central area including Tel Aviv participated, but others including Jerusalem did not, reflecting deep political divisions.
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — A suspected attack by Yemen’s Houthi rebels targeted a ship in the Red Sea on Monday, authorities said.
Two projectiles hit the vessel, and a third explosion occurred near the ship, the British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said.
“Damage control is underway,” UKMTO said. “There are no casualties onboard and the vessel is proceeding to its next port of call.”
The Houthis did not immediately claim responsibility for the attack. However, it can take the rebels hours or even days to acknowledge their assaults.
The Houthis have targeted more than 80 vessels with missiles and drones since the war in Gaza started in October. They seized one vessel and sank two in the campaign that also killed four sailors. Other missiles and drones have either been intercepted by a United States-led coalition in the Red Sea or failed to reach their targets.
The rebels maintain that they target ships linked to Israel, the U.S. or the U.K. to force an end to Israel’s campaign against Hamas in Gaza. However, many of the ships attacked have little or no connection to the conflict, including some bound for Iran.
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Palestinian health authorities and United Nations agencies on Sunday began a large-scale campaign of vaccinations against polio in the Gaza Strip, hoping to prevent an outbreak in the territory that has been ravaged by the Israel-Hamas war.
Authorities plan to vaccinate children in central Gaza until Wednesday before moving on to the more devastated northern and southern parts of the strip. The campaign began with a small number of vaccinations on Saturday and aims to reach about 640,000 children.
Gaza’s Health Ministry said more than 72,600 children received vaccines Sunday.
The World Health Organization has said Israel agreed to limited pauses in the fighting to facilitate the campaign. There were initial reports of Israeli strikes in central Gaza early Sunday, but it was not immediately known if anyone was killed or wounded. The pause ended Sunday afternoon, according to a schedule released by Israel.
Israel has said the vaccination program will continue through Sept. 9 and last eight hours a day.
Gaza recently reported its first polio case in 25 years — a 10-month-old boy, now paralyzed in a leg. The World Health Organization says the presence of a paralysis case indicates there could be hundreds more who have been infected but aren’t showing symptoms.