Nationwide strikes erupt in Israel as hostage deaths kindle pressure for cease-fire deal

Protests have spilled into Israel's streets, as the Jewish state braces for a nationwide strike amid mounting pressure on the administration of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to broker a cease-fire deal with Hamas and return hostages from the Gaza Strip.

Arnon Bar-David — the head of Israel's biggest union Histadrut that represents hundreds of thousands of workers in areas including health care and banking — called for a general strike across Israel's economy on Monday, the organization said on social media, amid a swelling wave of national frustration over the perceived failure of Netanyahu's government to clinch a deal and bring captive loved ones back home.

"It is impossible to stand in front of the cries of our children who are being murdered in the tunnels in Gaza, this is unacceptable," Bar-David said, according to a Google translation.

Israel's Manufacturers' Association endorsed the movement, with President Ron Tomer saying, "Too long we have been waiting for the right deal - it's time to bring the kidnapped home. The government must ensure that it does everything, for the return of the kidnapped as soon as possible, also under the restrictions of a limited cease-fire. We call on all businesses in Israel to act so."

Several municipalities and councils have declared support for the demonstrations.

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich criticized the action and on Sunday asked the country's attorney general to urgently petition the court for a restraining order to cancel the "political strike" of Monday.

"I ordered the salary supervisor to pass on a clear directive, which has already been published: an employee who does not come to work tomorrow will not be paid," he said in a Google-translated social media post.

"The heads of the Histadrut will not be allowed to turn the country upside down and use the workers as weapons to advance their political opinion."

Yair Lapid, Israel's opposition leader, backed the demonstration, urging "Histadrut and the employers and the local authorities to shut down the economy. You can't go on like this," according to a Google-translated update on the X social media platform.

The call to strike action comes after the Israel Defense Forces on Sunday reported recovering the bodies of six hostages abducted by Hamas from a tunnel in the south of the besieged Gaza Strip, which is controlled by the Palestinian militant group. The IDF estimates that Hamas still holds another 101 captives taken during the faction's Oct. 7 terror attack, although it remains unclear how many of these hostages are still alive.

The development rekindled the simmering discontent among Israelis who have been calling for the release of hostages, even at the cost of ending the war, on the heels of stalled negotiation progress by Israel, Hamas and mediators Qatar, Egypt and the U.S.

Massive crowds rallied in key Israeli cities on Sunday, with over 300,000 people gathered to demonstrate in Tel Aviv, according to a Google-translated update from the Hostage Families Forum, which organized some of the protests.

Adding to domestic divisions, the ongoing war has also left Israel increasingly isolated from an international community that urges a cease-fire amid concerns over the country's military response in the Gaza enclave and harm to Palestinian civilians.

It has further taken a heavy toll on the Israeli economy, whose public finances are strained by the simultaneous campaign in the Gaza enclave and less frequent military operations against neighboring Lebanon's militant group Hezbollah. Israel's GDP notched 1.2% annual growth in the second quarter, well below a 4.4% consensus, according to Reuters.

On Aug. 12, Fitch Ratings downgraded Israel's credit score from A+ to A, issuing a negative outlook and citing the impact of "heightened geopolitical risk and military operations on multiple fronts." The agency projects Israel's budget deficit will hit 7.8% of GDP in 2024 and forecasts debt will remain above 70% of GDP in the medium term.