Opposition to Netanyahu plan mounts as unions launch strike in Israel

Israelis opposed to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s judicial overhaul plan block a highway during a protest moments after the Israeli leader fired his defence minister, in Tel Aviv, Israel (Ohad Zwigenberg/AP)

Israel’s largest trade union group has launched a strike across a broad swathe of sectors, joining a surging protest movement against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plan to overhaul the judiciary – a plan that is facing unprecedented opposition.

The strike by the Histadrut umbrella group, which represents more than 700,000 workers in health, transit and banking, among many other fields, could paralyse large parts of Israel’s economy, which is already on shaky ground, ratcheting up the pressure on Mr Netanyahu to suspend the overhaul.