Israel Summons Thousands of Indian-Uzbek Construction Workers to Displace Palestinian Workers

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Jakarta –

The Israeli government will bring in 65,000 foreign workers from India, Sri Lanka and Uzbekistan. This is to continue construction which was stopped since October 7 2023 when Palestinian workers were sent home due to the conflict between Hamas and Israel.

Reporting from , Monday (5/2/2024), previously around 72,000 Palestinian workers were employed in construction projects in Israel. After the war, the government decided to dismiss and expel them from Israel for security reasons.

Some 20,000 foreign workers still live there, but nearly half of the country’s construction sites have been closed due to labor shortages.

A spokesperson for Israel’s Ministry of Public Housing said the new group of foreign workers was expected to arrive in the coming weeks.

“The government is trying to avoid disrupting the supply of building materials which would risk increasing real estate prices again as interest rates start to fall,” he said.

In 2022, Israel’s construction market was worth US$ 71 billion and is projected to continue increasing with average annual growth of more than 2% over the 2024-2027 period, the Global Data Store report said.

The Israeli government aims to develop transportation and energy infrastructure, while building housing projects.

(aid/kil)