There are fears for thousands of missing Palestinians after the Israeli government cancelled work…
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Thousands of Gazans missing in Israel as workers ‘rounded up and blindfolded’
There are fears for thousands of missing Palestinians after the Israeli government cancelled work permits for Gazans after the deadly Hamas attacks on 7 October.
Trade unions, officials and humanitarian organisations have raised concerns for their safety after reports Palestinians with permission to work in Israel were rounded up, arrested and blindfolded before being taken to military camps.
The Minister of Labour for the Palestinian Authorities, Dr Nasri Abu Jaish, told The Independent around 4,500 workers were still unaccounted for but are believed to have been detained by Israeli forces. Dr Jaish said he had met workers after some of them were released, sharing stories of alleged mistreatment.
“They’re being tortured,” Dr Jaish said. “They’re beaten and scarves are tied around their eyes so they don’t know where they are. Many of them are sick and they don’t give them medicine. They don’t give them water or food. They’re in open-air camps and aren’t allowed to speak to each other.”
Thousands of Palestinians missing. Thousands. In fucking camps.
“We were blindfolded and had our hands and feet tied,” he says. “I wanted to die. I’ve been working here for years and always get tips. I’ve never done anything wrong and I’ve never been involved in anything political,” he says. “They kept calling us ‘Hamas’ and ‘terrorists’. It was absolutely humiliating.
“We were kept in a dark room with hundreds of others and especially those under 30 were beaten badly and questioned. The elderly and those with diabetes were refused medication, food or water.
“I just came here to support my family,” said the cleaner, who is now living in a shelter in the West Bank. “All my kids and grandkids in Gaza depend on me, there are 23 people in my family that depend on me. Now I have no home, no job and no money. How am I supposed to live anymore? It’s unbearable.”
The International Labour Organisation told The Independent there were between 4,000 and 5,000 workers unaccounted for.
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Palestinian workers in Israel must pass stringent security tests and are usually hired to do jobs such as agriculture, construction and service work. According to the UNRWA, Gaza has one of the worst unemployment rates in the world at 47 per cent.
“Israel themselves passed their security checks,” Dr Jaish added. “There’s no way these people are Hamas.”
archived link / current as of oct 24th, 2023 (australian eastern time).