Israel Airports Authority Chairman: "Bullying behavior – those responsible will pay"

Chairman of the Israel Airports Authority (IAA), Major General (res.) Iftach Ron-Tal, commented this evening in an interview with Channel 14 on the chaos at Ben Gurion Airport following the workers' strike. Ron-Tal defined the move as "bullying behavior" and clarified that he would not let it pass.

"This is the busiest day at Ben Gurion Airport, with about 105,000 passengers, and in the busiest period of the year. From my point of view, this is an unbearable reality. These are unilateral actions of stopping work in the middle of a shift. This is something I cannot tolerate, and whoever is responsible for this – will pay."

In response to a question about whether he could guarantee to the traveling public that such an event would not happen again, the chairman said: "I can guarantee that we will do everything in our power, including actions already being taken now, so that such a thing does not happen again. Citizens of Israel paid money, planned vacations, and booked hotels. It cannot be that struggles are managed on the backs of the passengers."

During the interview, Ron-Tal was asked about the performance of the workers' committee chairman, Pinhas Idan, and the possibility that he would end his role following the events. Ron-Tal refrained from answering directly regarding Idan's dismissal, but noted: "The conduct of the workers' organization today is unbearable. We will study the incident immediately upon the return of the airport to operation and will take all actions available to us to draw the right conclusions. It is simply unacceptable."

Regarding the timing of the strike, which took place while the Minister of Transport is on vacation abroad, Ron-Tal said: "The timing does not interest me. Such moves are improper at any time, and in this case, it is a sin upon a crime because of the heavy load in the sky and at the airport."

In conclusion, Ron-Tal estimated that the airport would return to full operation tomorrow towards noon, and perhaps even sooner. He concluded his remarks with an apology to the passengers: "I am sorry for the suffering and inconvenience. We will do everything required so that this does not happen again in the future."