By Ofer Petersburg
The employment of thousands of foreign construction (click here) and renovation workers has been approved to fill the void left by Palestinian workers. The Population Authority has permitted contractors to hire workers from different countries in response to the ongoing war and the ban on Palestinian workers entering Israel since October 7. This ban has halted construction and renovation work in the country.
In the upcoming allocation of foreign workers, 4,000 people will be assigned to the renovation industry and small contractors. Additionally, an Israeli workers' bank will be established to assist local workers and support the renovation contractors during this challenging period. This initiative has been welcomed by Eran Siev, Chairman of the Association of Renovation Contractors, who acknowledged the need for government support in the midst of the crisis.
Committee Chairman MK Eliyahu Rabivo (Likud) explained the decision, stating that "due to the security concerns and the citizens' long-term worries, it was necessary to replace Palestinian workers with foreign workers. The renovation contractors play a crucial role in Israel's construction market, and we must support them during these uncertain times. The past is behind us, and we must adapt to the new circumstances."...
Yes, the picture is very dated, but, the reporting is not.
May 7, 2024
By Ofer Petersburg
By Ofer Petersburg
Palestinian workers at the end of a workday, Eyal Crossing, May 2015.
An anonymous survey (click here) by the Renovation Contractors Association among 180 contractors indicates that 20% rehired their former Palestinian workers to work after Passover.
Presently, Israel bars Palestinian entry but continues to renew their work permits. Consequently, workers possess valid permits but are prohibited from employment due to the absence of entry permits for workers from the territories in the renovations sector.
Eran Siev, Chair of the Renovation Contractors Association, states, "Israel already permits 28,000 Palestinians to work legally: 8,000 in Judea and Samaria, 10,000 in essential factories, and 8,000 in isolated industrial areas."...
Presently, Israel bars Palestinian entry but continues to renew their work permits. Consequently, workers possess valid permits but are prohibited from employment due to the absence of entry permits for workers from the territories in the renovations sector.
Eran Siev, Chair of the Renovation Contractors Association, states, "Israel already permits 28,000 Palestinians to work legally: 8,000 in Judea and Samaria, 10,000 in essential factories, and 8,000 in isolated industrial areas."...
Erdogan is on a tangent no one understands.
May 3, 2024
By Ofer Petersburg
After more than six months (click here) of deepening crisis in Israel's construction and infrastructure sector, Raul Srugo, President of the Bonei Haaretz (Builders of the Land) Contractors Association, representing contractors and entrepreneurs across the industry, penned a scathing letter to the prime minister and finance minister, accusing the government of driving the industry to the brink of collapse.
"This industry is at its worst state ever, among other things due to government decisions that only deepened the crisis," Srugo contends. According to association data, decisions led by the government to halt the entry of Palestinian workers since October 7 and attempts to replace them with foreign workers who have not arrived are expected to cause a 6-8 month delay in projects nationwide.
In the letter, Srugo warns Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich that without an immediate plan to bring in 50,000 foreign workers, permit the return of some Palestinian workers, compensate affected contractors and facilitate imports, the consequences will include contractor collapse, apartment price hikes, Israeli worker layoffs, hindered reconstruction efforts, and substantial revenue loss to state coffers from tax under-collection and reduced land sales....
Militarily there are now smaller groups of terrorists in Gaza attacking the IDF. The IDF has been targeting leadership so what is left are smaller groups of terrorists who have banned together to attack the IDF in Gaza without a central authority. The rockets falling on northern Israel are Hezbollah across the Lebanon border. Hezbollah has centralized authority.
This video is one of the attacks by small terrorist groups in Gaza. While watching this video one might ask why do all the buildings come down? I do not believe this video in that there was a sophisticated drone that dropped the shell that killed four IDF soldiers. I believe the drone found the tank, but, that shell is dropped from a tall building by hand.
As an observer it is not simple to understand the strategies of generals. But, the IDF from the beginning of the war had one clear prerogative and that was to destroy any infrastructure that supported Hamas' aggression. Hamas used the infrastructure meant for Palestinians to live in peace, and turned them into battle stations.
We didn't really see this sort of strategy in Iraq. There was corruption within the power structures depending on the location and it was appropriately dealt with. But, it never took on the observable identity of using the civilian population as human shields. That danger was normalized in Gaza by Hamas.
