Unlike Palestinians in Gaza, Israelis can rise up to challenge their leadership. Late-night skirmishes between protesters and the authorities Sunday on Tel Aviv’s usually hyper-busy eight-lane Ayalon Highway were a manifestation of that.
As flames and dense smoke engulfed wooden pallets and tires on the roads, I watched a young man, blue paint spray in hand, scrawl his message to the prime minister in foot-high letters on the roadside wall: “Hostages or revolt.”
The strike began at 05:00 local time and was expected to last 24 hours but at midday a court ordered it to end, considering it “political” and “unrelated” to the issue for which it had been called. Histadrut chairman Arnon Bar-David announced to the labor court that he was considering a petition to suspend it that would end the action at 18.00. However, the court ordered the strike to end at 2:30 p.m. and Bar-David responded by urging workers to return to their posts.
During its short duration, the strike failed to paralyze Israel.
Labor federation chief Arnon Bar-David says hostage release stuck due to ‘political considerations,’ most of labor market will strike as of 6 a.m. Monday
Grieving and angry Israelis surged into the streets Sunday night after six more hostages were found dead in Gaza, chanting “Now! Now!” as they demanded that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reach a cease-fire with Hamas to bring the remaining captives home.
Israel’s largest trade union, the Histadrut, pressured the government by calling a general strike for Monday, the first since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack that started the war.
Histadrut Labor Federation chief Arnon Bar-David announces a general strike set for tomorrow over the failure to release hostages held in Gaza, stating that “a deal is more important than anything else.”
(March 30, 2023)
The strike on Monday of Israel‘s largest worker‘s union, the Histadrut Labor Federation, was coordinated with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu‘s inner circle, a senior member of the coalition confirmed on Thursday.
The head of the Histadrut labor federation urges again far-right Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to set a date for early elections, indicating that if the premier refuses, the organization could take steps aimed at forcing his hand.
Speaking at a conference hosted by Yedioth Ahronoth on Wednesday, May 8, Arnon Bar-David declares that Netanyahu and his government “cannot avoid responsibility for the failures of October 7.”
Last year, when protests against the same government’s divisive judicial overhaul plan reached a tipping point following Netanyahu’s firing of Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, the Histadrut declared a general strike, helping force the prime minister to walk back that decision and to pause the overhaul.
Hunderttausende Menschen haben am Mittwoch in ganz Argentinien gegen die Politik der Regierung und des Präsidenten Javier Milei sowie dessen „Notstandsdekrete“ protestiert. Gleichzeitig galt ein bis Mitternacht andauernder zwölfstündiger Generalstreik im ganzen Land. Zahlreiche Gewerkschaften und weitere zivilgesellschaftliche Gruppen bezeugten weltweit ihre Solidarität mit den Protesten. Von Christian Dürr.
The head of Israel‘s main public sector union said on Monday he would meet with other union officials to discuss the possibility…
Likud minister David Amsalem launched a public attack on Bar-David, anticipating that the latter could end up launching a nationwide strike.
“I remind you that you represent workers who are mostly Likud people who are struggling to make a living,” Amsalem tweeted. “The issue of the judicial reform should be decided in the Knesset, not in the corridors of the Mapai-like Histadrut,” he argued, citing the workers’ party that was a precursor to left-wing Labor and was the ruling party for Israel’s first three decades.
Lapid and Histadrut Chairman Arnon Bar-David reportedly discussed the outline for dialogue that the chairman and his colleagues had recently presented to the prime minister.
Bar-David said after meeting with Lapid: „I will continue to turn over every stone and work with all my might to try and find the right compromise.
Following the meeting, Lapid said he commends „the efforts of the chairman and the framework set by the Histadrut as a basis for shared dialogue.“ Bar-David said „I call on the other parties to show responsible leadership.„
Opposition leader Yair Lapid is meeting with Histadrut labor federation chair Arnon Bar-David in the latter’s office in Tel Aviv.
Bar-David has come under pressure from anti-overhaul protesters to call a strike over the coalition’s bill to curb the authority of the courts.
Anti-overhaul protesters are rallying outside the Histadrut’s headquarters in Tel Aviv, as chief Arnon Bar-David holds “emergency” deliberations amid calls for the labor federation to declare a strike.
Histadrut chief Arnon Bar-David is facing intense pressure from opponents of the judicial shakeup to declare a general strike to stop the bill to limit court oversight of government decisions.
The meeting was to include other senior Histadrut officials and Dov Amitai, head of the Israeli Presidency of Business Organizations. According to reports Friday, Bar-David and Amitai met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently to try to find a compromise deal.
As the Netanyahu-led gov‘t prepares to further advance a key component of the legislation, the leaders of the protest movement are pressuring the Histadrut to call for a general strike across Israel
These include ones putting pressure on the head of the country’s largest federation of trade unions, with the aim of shutting down the national economy.
The Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee will convene at 9:30 A.M. Sunday to continue deliberations on repealing the reasonableness standard used by courts in their review of government decisions.
(30 March 2023)
Kan news, citing unnamed sources, reported that Yonatan Urich, an adviser to Netanyahu, coordinated with Histadrut officials throughout the day on the timing and content of press conferences held by Netanyahu and the labor union’s Bar-David. It also said the premier’s wife Sara spoke with officials close to Bar-David, telling them to pressure the government to work towards broad agreements on judicial reform.
Many protesters have been angered that the labor federation has not called a general strike after a bill to radically curb judicial oversight over government decisions was passed overnight in its first reading.
In late March the union joined a daylong general strike triggered by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s since-reversed decision to fire Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for calling to pause the judicial legislation amid growing unrest over the overhaul. The strike was called off the same day after Netanyahu agreed to pause the legislation to allow for negotiations with the opposition.
Organization leaders say marches, convoys and demonstrations were planned, calling also for a general labor strike to protest the Israeli judicial reform
With lawmakers poised to discuss on June 8 a draft bill proposed by the opposition Liot party to cancel the retirement age reform, the unions said in a joint statement that the day of industrial action on June 6 was meant to “allow all workers to make themselves heard by the MPs.”
(March 27, 2023 8:13 pm)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday he would temporarily freeze his government‘s controversial plans to enfeeble the judicial system, following a night of mass demonstrations across the country and an unprecedented general strike.
Netanyahu said that he ordered „the timeout“ on the controversial legislation until after the Knesset recess in order „to give a real opportunity for real dialogue.“
Head of the Federation of Local Authorities, himself a member of the ruling Likud, Haim Bibas said the rift in Israeli society had nearly crossed the point of no return.
„We call on the prime minister to immediately halt his legislative push to overhaul the judiciary and reinstate ousted defense minister Gallant,“ he said. Netanyahu must recalibrate his path and enter immediate dialogue to bring about a broad agreement and preserve the unity of the country,“ he said.
The government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu survived a no-confidence vote in the Knesset, the country‘s parliament, amid what is possibly the largest wave of demonstrations in Israel‘s history.
Mass protests are rocking Israel, and the country‘s largest labor union announced a major strike Monday in opposition to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu‘s months-long attempt to push through widely-derided judicial reforms that opponents say will pull the country toward an autocracy.
“We are all worried about Israel’s fate,” Histadrut chief Arnon Bar-David said during a press conference alongside business leaders and public officials. “Together we say, enough!”
“We have lost our way — this is not about left or right,” he continued. “We can no longer polarize the nation.”
The announcement came ahead of an expected statement by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he is freezing the legislation.
Retrouvez ici toutes les infos et ressources concernant la campagne commune de la NUPES contre la réforme de la retraite à 64 ans !
In Frankreich geht der Streit um die Rentenreform in die nächste Runde: Massive Streiks führen zu Problemen im Bahn- und Nahverkehr, Flüge fallen aus, auch bei der Müllabfuhr und an Schulen ruht die Arbeit. Die Gewerkschaften wollen das ganze Land lahmlegen.
(Video: Yair Palti)
Mass rallies began Monday morning across the country as thousands headed to Jerusalem amid a large-scale strike to protest the government’s plans to impose radical, sweeping changes on the judiciary.
Thousands of parents and students were marching in Tel Aviv, while protesters blockaded the main entrance to the airport as others demonstrated outside the home of a far-right lawmaker.
The Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee will begin a legislative blitz on Monday whose goal is to overturn Israel’s system of government. Committee chairman Simcha Rothman will try to secure passage of bills that would bar the Supreme Court from overturning unconstitutional Basic Laws and change the Judicial Appointments Committee’s composition so that representatives of the governing coalition can select the judges.
(@N12News poll)