Nationwide strike in Israel, major airports suspend takeoffs and landings

On September 2 local time, a nationwide strike broke out in Israel, having a major impact on multiple fields such as transportation and public services in the country. Among them, major airports were also forced to suspend takeoffs and landings.

This large-scale strike was called by the chairman of the Histadrut, Israel's largest trade union. The purpose is to put pressure on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government, demanding that the government reach an agreement with the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) as soon as possible and release the Israelis who were previously detained.

Affected by the strike, Israel's main aviation hub, Ben Gurion Airport, was closed at 8 am local time on the 2nd, and aircraft suspended takeoffs and landings. Municipal services in Tel Aviv were also closed for part of the day on the 2nd. Practitioners in many industries have joined the strike, including transportation, healthcare, education, etc., causing some public services in the city to come to a standstill.

Previously, the Israeli Defense Forces found the bodies of six detained Israelis in an underground tunnel in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah. Preliminary estimates suggest that they had died several days earlier. This news has caused strong dissatisfaction across Israel, followed by large-scale demonstrations. Hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets calling on the government to reach a ceasefire agreement with Hamas and promote the release of Israelis detained in Gaza.

At present, the Israeli government has not made a clear response to the strike incident and related demands. The duration and subsequent impacts of the strike are also unclear. This nationwide strike not only has an impact on Israel's domestic economic and social order but also has attracted widespread attention from the international community. All parties are closely following the development of the situation and expect the Israeli government and relevant parties to be able to solve the problem through negotiation as soon as possible and restore normal social order and production and life.