JERUSALEM – Israel's opposition leader, Yair Lapid, called on Sunday for a strike to shut down the economy in order to pressure the government to reach an agreement to release the remaining prisoners in the Gaza Strip.
Lapid, who is also prime minister, called on all Israelis “whose heart is broken this morning” to join a mass protest in Tel Aviv later in the day. He also called on Israel's largest trade union, businessmen and municipalities to go on strike.
He said this after Israel retrieved the bodies of six other hostages from Gaza.
The powerful Histadrut trade union, which represents hundreds of thousands of government workers, said it was considering a strike and would make a decision later in the day after meeting with the families of the hostages.
The Israel Manufacturers' Association said it supported the strike and criticized the government for failing to return the hostages alive, which they called a “moral duty”.
“Without the return of the hostages we will not be able to end the war, we will not be able to rebuild ourselves as a community and we will not begin to fix the Israeli economy. We are sad and divided and this is the place to take action to unite the Israeli community,” said the head of the organization Ron Tomer.
“The government must ensure that it does everything, so that the hostages can return as soon as possible, even under the limits of a limited ceasefire, and I ask all Israeli businesses to do something to make it happen.”
(This story has been reposted to remove a word outside of paragraph 4)
