Iris Haim, whose son Yotam was tragically killed as he attempted to escape Hamas captivity in Gaza, on Monday called on the Israeli public to take the right considerations into account when deciding whether or not to support the general strike.
"On October 6, I was one of those who attended protests. Sometimes. Not at Kaplan; smaller protests. But then I understood that these protests cause so much damage. And today I ask all those who feel that this protest helps something in the State of Israel."
Haim added that prior to October 7, she protested, for a year, against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government, "and even now, I am not a supporter of it."
"And what did these protests lead to? What did they help us with? They brought us October 7. I think that anyone who is willing to listen a bit for a moment, to stop the erosion for a moment, to not go out to the streets and to not believe that if Netanyahu, who we now call the 'murderer' will go home - that is what will save the country."
"People are willing to do everything in order to bring down the government - to call someone else a murderer, to go protest, to put the State of Israel on strike, to harm their own children. My son was killed, and I do not blame anyone. ... Some of the army has boycotted the State. So what is the next step, really? I am very afraid and it really scares me most when I hear people writing to me - and they don't even live in Israel - that the protests and strikes are not in order to bring back the hostages but in order to bring down the Netanyahu government."
"So come and pause for a moment. Anyone who is thinking about striking or protesting - do you want to lose your child as well? Think about it that way. Because I already lost mine."