The Israeli government is actively recruiting Indian workers following the ban on tens of thousands of Palestinian workers since the conflict between the two countries erupted on October 7. A video shared by Al Jazeera shows Indians queuing in long lines for jobs in Israel as the war with Hamas escalates in the Gaza Strip. Despite the risks to their safety, many find the opportunity preferable to hunger at home.
This recruitment drive aims to address labour shortages in Israel, intensified by nearly four months of fighting against the Hamas group in Gaza. Despite being the world’s fifth-largest economy and one of the fastest-growing, India has struggled to generate enough full-time and well-paying jobs for millions of people.
For the hundreds of Indians in line, almost all men, the chance of securing skilled construction jobs in Israel, along with wages up to 18 times higher, outweighs their fears. "If it is written in our fate to die, we will die there — at least our kids will get something," said motorbike mechanic Jabbar Singh, as reported by the news agency AFP, among the packed crowd at a training centre and recruitment site in Lucknow, the capital of Uttar Pradesh state.
The urban unemployment rate in India and the percentage of people wanting work who cannot find a job dipped to 5.1% from July 2022 to June last year, down from 6.6% between the same months a year earlier, according to an AFP report. The Indian embassy in Tel Aviv stated that there are approximately 18,000 Indian citizens in Israel, primarily caregivers looking after the elderly, as well as others employed as diamond traders and information technology professionals. Some are students.
The conflict erupted on October 7 last year when the Hamas group from Gaza launched an unprecedented attack on Israel, resulting in about 1,140 deaths. Militants also seized 250 hostages, and Israel reported about 132 remain in Gaza, including the bodies of at least 28 dead hostages. Israel has vowed to crush Hamas and launched a relentless military offensive that the Palestinian territory’s health ministry said has killed at least 25,900 people, about 70 per cent of them women and children.