Big strike paralyses Tunisia, thousands protest over pay row

A man holds a loaf of bread in his hand during a nationwide strike against the government's refusal to raise wages in Tunis, Tunisia January 17, 2019. REUTERS/Zoubeir Souissi

TUNIS (Reuters) - Rail, bus and air traffic stopped in Tunisia and street protests drew thousands on Thursday as the huge UGTT union staged a one-day nationwide strike to challenge the government's refusal to raise the salaries of 670,000 public servants.

The strike was the biggest since the assassination of opposition politician Chokri Belaid in February 2013, when Tunisia was navigating a rocky transition to democracy after the toppling of autocrat Ben Ali two years earlier.