Ben-Gurion Airport Strike Sparks Political Firestorm

On a Thursday that coincided with one of Israel’s busiest travel periods, a workers’ strike at Ben-Gurion Airport halted landings at 2 p.m., grounded flights for roughly an hour and left an estimated 100,000 passengers and about 600 scheduled flights in limbo. The workers’ committee also locked airport parking entrances, causing hundreds of vehicles to queue along the roadside and creating severe congestion in the terminal. Departures resumed gradually under an updated schedule, while authorities investigated whether the action constituted an undeclared work-to-rule slowdown.

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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu posted on X that “Ben-Gurion Airport will continue to remain open and operate as usual,” and warned that anyone obstructing operations “should be fired” “Ben-Gurion Airport will continue to remain open and operate as usual,” — Benjamin Netanyahu, prime minister. Transportation Minister Miri Regev instructed the Israel Airports Authority to petition the Labor Court against the union, describing the strike as “thug-like, illegal” and saying those responsible would “pay a heavy price.” Tourism Ministry Director General Michael Yitzhakov labeled the chaos “bullying and disgraceful conduct,” though he did not specify the target of the accusation.

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“Tens of thousands of Israelis were blackmailed by the government on one of the busiest days at Ben-Gurion Airport, because of political interests,” — Naftali Bennett, former prime minister. Gadi Eisenkot, chairman of the Yashar! party, called the incident “not an isolated incident” and linked it to the Netanyahu government’s “failed management” “The chaos at Ben Gurion Airport on one of the busiest days of the year is not an isolated incident,” — Gadi Eisenkot. Keren Turner of the Beyachad party echoed the criticism, saying the public is suffering from “poor public service” and a “collapsing” ministry.

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• Approx. 100,000 passengers affected

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• Around 600 flights scheduled

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• Disruption lasted about 1 hour before landings were halted

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• Parking lot entrances locked, leaving hundreds of vehicles stranded

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Senior Transportation Ministry officials said they are probing whether the strike amounted to an undeclared slowdown. No further legal actions have been announced at the time of reporting.

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