When Israel’s largest union began a strike on Monday, building on the largest anti-government protests since the start of the war in Gaza, the group hoped to persuade the government to swiftly agree to a cease-fire.

Within hours, its effort fizzled as the union — which represents 800,000 Israelis — complied with a court order to end the strike. And the day ended with a defiant speech from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in which he refused to compromise in the negotiations with Hamas and implicitly rebuked the protesters for straining Israel’s social cohesion.

Despite one of the biggest displays of wartime dissent in Israel’s history, an emotionally potent moment failed to evolve into a political turning point.

“Politically, it could have been much worse for Netanyahu,” said Ariel Kahana, a commentator for Israel Hayom, a leading right-wing newspaper. “It looks like the opposition has lost,” Mr. Kahana added.

While the strike slowed or suspended services at thousands of schools and several municipalities, transport networks and hospitals, some sectors were only partly affected. Many municipal authorities and institutions declined to take part.

Unlike in March 2023, when a general strike and mass protests prompted Mr. Netanyahu to suspend a contentious plan to overhaul the judiciary, this time his right-wing party maintained the public unity it has displayed throughout the war. Only Yoav Gallant, the defense minister, voted against a recent cabinet motion to restrict the circumstances in which Israel could agree to a cease-fire, and few, if any, other senior officials from his party, Likud, have broken ranks in public.