16,000 Indian construction workers move to Israel replacing barred Palestinians
Around 16,000 Indian construction workers have become a pivotal source of labour working in Israel's construction industry. Ths significant surge is Israel government's efforts to fill the gap left by Palestinian construction workers barred from entering the country since the Hamas attack in October 2023.
Had that attack not occurred, this site, with its gradually rising high-rise buildings, homes, roads, and sidewalks, would have been bustling with workers speaking Arabic—rather than the Hindi, Hebrew, and even Mandarin spoken here today.
The attack by Hamas prompted a deadly war between Israel and militant group Hamas in the Gaza strip. The war later coupled with Iran-backed groups including Hezbollah in Lebanon and Huthi rebels in Yemen.
High earnings in Israel, where some workers can make three times what they would back home, are the key to why people like Nishad flock here, thousands of kilometres (miles) away.
Indians have been working in Israel for decades, with thousands employed as caregivers for elderly Israelis, while others are involved in diamond trading and IT. However, since the escalation of the war in Gaza, recruitment efforts have been intensified to bring Indians into Israel's construction sector as well.
- PTC NEWS
