Transport Minister Threatens Legal Action as Ben Gurion Airport Halts All Landings Amid Strike

Ben Gurion Airport experienced an unprecedented operational crisis on Thursday, leading to a complete halt of all landings and severe delays affecting over 100,000 passengers and more than 600 scheduled flights. The disruption began early in the afternoon, one of the busiest travel days of the year, when check-in counters stopped passenger processing and baggage handling, causing massive queues at security and baggage claim areas. Ground operations reached full capacity, leaving arriving aircraft unable to unload luggage, which compounded delays.

Transport Minister Merav Michaeli condemned the strike as "violent and illegal," ordering the Airports Authority management to immediately petition the Labor Court to force the workers' union to end the strike. She warned that those responsible for holding tens of thousands of Israeli citizens hostage would "pay a heavy price." The Airports Authority blamed the workers' union for deliberate disruptions harming operational continuity and the traveling public.

Conversely, the Transportation Workers Union and the Histadrut labor federation rejected claims of a sudden strike, attributing the crisis to a long-anticipated collapse caused by severe and ongoing staff shortages, inadequate summer preparations, and extreme worker fatigue due to excessive overtime. The union highlighted a problematic employment model where temporary workers are dismissed each winter to avoid granting permanent status, resulting in high turnover and reluctance to return during peak seasons. Union chairman Pinchas Idan had warned senior officials in June about the planned dismissal of approximately 250 temporary workers, cautioning that the system would struggle to handle August's heavy workloads.

The Airports Authority has demanded an immediate return to normal operations and threatened urgent legal action if the strike continues. The timing of flight departures remains uncertain as the crisis unfolds.