Thousands of people have taken to the streets of Israel evening to protest against prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s controversial reforms to the country’s judicial system.

Chanting “the country is on fire”, demonstrators gathered outside Mr Netanyahu’s residence in Jerusalem on Sunday evening to demand the draft legislation be withdrawn, only to be dispersed by police water cannons. Bonfires were meanwhile lit along Tel Aviv’s biggest motorway, forcing road closures and causing traffic mayhem.

On Monday, the protests continued, while Israel’s largest union, Histadrut, which represents 700,000 workers across a huge variety of professions, called for an immediate general strike. Universities have closed their doors “until further notice” and flights from Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion airport have been grounded, as pressure grows to halt the legislation.

Joe Sommerlad explains why protests have started in Israel.

Israeli embassies worldwide were instructed to join a strike on Monday against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s judicial overhaul plan, a workers’ union letter seen by Reuters said.

The letter, citing a nationwide strike in Israel declared by the Histadrut labour federation, said Foreign Ministry activities in the country and abroad would be limited to emergency services

Protestors have taken to the streets in Israel after prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu sacked his defence minister.

The country has faced weeks of mass protests over controversial plans to overhaul the judiciary.

Mr Netanyahu fired Yoav Gallant on Sunday (26 March) after the retired army general called for a halt to the reforms.

“The security of the state of Israel has always been and will always remain the mission of my life,” Mr Gallant said.

Opposition leader Yair Lapid said the sacking is a new low for the government.

Israel‘s justice minister said he would respect any decision prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu makes about the future of a bitterly contested judicial overhaul, adding that lack of unity in the government could bring it down.

“A situation in which everyone does as they wish is liable to bring about the instant fall of the government and collapse of the (ruling party) Likud,” Yariv Levin said in a statement. “We must all strive to stabilise the government and coalition.”

Two main ports in Israel have announced that they had stopped work in adherence to a labour strike in protest at the religious-nationalist government’s judicial overhaul.

Haifa and Ashdod ports said in separate statements that work was halted after Israel‘s main labour union announced a general strike earlier on Monday until Prime Minister Benjamin Netanayhu stopped judicial legislation.

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s religious-nationalist coalition government on Monday survived a no-confidence motion filed by the opposition in protest at its judicial overhaul plan.

The motion failed by a vote of 59-53, the Knesset speaker said.

The developments were being watched in Washington, which is closely allied with Israel yet has been uneasy with Netanyahu and the far-right elements of his government.

National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson said the United States was “deeply concerned” by the developments in Israel, “which further underscore the urgent need for compromise.” “Democratic values have always been, and must remain, a hallmark of the U.S.-Israel relationship,” Watson said in a statement.

Israel‘s largest trade union group launched a strike across a broad swath of sectors Monday, 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 paralyze large parts of Israel‘s economy, which is already on shaky ground, ratcheting up the pressure on Netanyahu to suspend the overhaul.

Departing flights out of the country’s main international airport were grounded in protest, affecting thousands of travelers. Other sectors were also falling in line, with local governments, which manage pre-schools and other essential services, as well as a main doctors union announcing they would walk out.

The growing resistance to the plan came hours after tens of thousands of people burst into the streets around the country in a spontaneous show of anger at Netanyahu’s decision to fire his defense minister after he called for a pause to the overhaul. Chanting “the country is on fire,” they lit bonfires on Tel Aviv’s main highway, closing the throughway and many others throughout the country for hours.