Lydda Airport Paralyzed by Strike of 800 Civil Aviation Workers

Lydda Airport was paralyzed by a sudden strike of 800 civil aviation workers this afternoon. The employes left their jobs without warning to protest alleged red tape in meeting their wage demands. Incoming flights were diverted to airfields in other countries. Planes ready to take off discharged their passengers. El Al ordered its planes at foreign airports not to take off for Israel until the strike ends and has instructed all passengers not to come to Lydda until further notice. The strikers said they would handle emergency landings and military planes. The wildcat strike at Lydda exacerbated the situation caused by the continuing strike of customs officials which has halted all cargo movements at the airport and on the docks of Ashdod. The customs officers manned their posts only to check passenger luggage for explosives in the aftermath of terrorist attempts to blow up two El Al jets last week. But goods overflowed the warehouses at Lydda and Ashdod and some were plied outside. Meanwhile, 26 customs inspectors stationed at the Jordan River bridges returned to work last night after being threatened with prison terms if they continued their strike. The officials, though civilians, have been seconded to the military government and are under its authority. When they defied a back-to-work order issued Friday by Brig. Gen. Raphael Vardi, they were summarily tried by a military court and sentenced to prison terms. But they were offered pardons if they returned to work immediately. The act brought a public outcry against the military trial of civilians.