Key Points
Israel's government closed crossings from the West Bank, cutting off thousands of Palestinians from work, and many of the foreign workers whom Israel relies on to operate its farms and construction industry left..
Most of the roughly 30,000 foreign agricultural workers in Israel were from Thailand, dozens of whom were kidnapped or killed on Oct. 7...
In the coming weeks, thousands of people from India and Sri Lanka will be sent to Israel, officials in the three countries said, as part of agreements to supply workers, primarily in construction, health care and agriculture..
The recruitment in South Asia is not intended to fill the gap left by Palestinian workers but is part of filling existing quotas for foreign labor, Israeli officials said.. Inbal Mashash, the director of the foreign workers administration in Israel's Population and Immigration Authority, said Israel's economy was under pressure because of foreign workers leaving, more Israeli reservists being called up for military service and restrictions on Palestinians entering from the West Bank...
"There's no doubt that the economy is experiencing a kind of crisis right now in terms of manpower," she said.. Representatives from the Israel Builders Association, a private organization, said that they were screening workers in India for construction jobs and that screenings would begin soon in Sri Lanka, where thousands have applied...
