“It’s better than being hungry here”: despite the conflict in the Middle East between Israel and Hamas, thousands of Indians are lining up for jobs in Israel, lacking labor due to of the war.
“I will smile and take a bullet – but for 150,000 rupees” (around $2,400), tells AFP Deepak Kumar, gathered with a crowd of candidates for exile in a training and recruitment center in Lucknow, 500 km east of New Delhi.
In India, it’s “work four days, eat two days”, laments this tiler, who says he knows the risks of going to Israel where the war against Hamas has been raging for almost four months.
Although India is the world’s fifth largest economy and one of the fastest growing, millions of people cannot find full-time employment there.
Nearly 22% of Indian employees are “casual workers,” with an average monthly income of 7,899 rupees ($128), according to government data. Particularly in construction, where construction site interruptions are generally not compensated.
So, the hope of being hired as a skilled construction worker in Israel is stronger than the danger, with the prospect of multiplying your salary by 18.
“If it says we must die, we will die there. At least our children will have something,” says Jabbar Singh, a motorcycle repairer. “It’s better than being hungry here,” he said simply.
10,000 Indians wanted
According to the Indian embassy in Tel Aviv, some 18,000 Indians already work in Israel. Mostly in the field of personal assistance, but also in the diamond sector, artificial intelligence, or students.
But the war has reshuffled the cards and new profiles are sought: “tilers, plasterers, carpenters, benders”, lists MA Khan, in charge of placing workers at the Lucknow Industrial Training Institute.
Because the conflict led to the repatriation of thousands of workers from Asia, the mobilization of numerous Israeli reservists and the abolition of work permits for Palestinian workers.
According to Raj Kumar Yadav, the head of the Institute, Israeli recruiters are now looking for as many as 10,000 skilled construction workers, for salaries of up to 140,000 rupees ($2,267).
“They will give them a visa and take them with them on a charter flight,” he says, and “10,000 families will be fed.”
The program is supported by the Indian authorities, specifies this official, who emphasizes that it offers a form of security to would-be immigrants who would otherwise risk falling into the hands of human traffickers.
The number of volunteers is growing day by day: “The first day, we had around 600 candidates, of which more than 300 were selected. Yesterday, there were more than 1,000 candidates, and more than 750 selected. Today, there are 1,200 to 1,300 candidates,” underlines MA Khan.
” Red zone “
While job seekers queue in Lucknow, Israel intensifies its offensive 4,500 kilometers away against Khan Younes, in the south of the Gaza Strip.
Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas, which launched an unprecedented attack on its soil on October 7 which left around 1,140 dead according to an AFP count based on Israeli figures. Hamas also captured some 250 hostages.
Dozens of Thai and Nepalese farm workers were killed or taken hostage.
Many foreign workers fled after the attack, depriving agriculture of an important source of labor. Israel also withdrew their work permits from 130,000 Palestinian cross-border workers.
“I know I’m going into a red zone. But I have to feed my family,” summarizes Keshav Das, a father of two children in Lucknow. “Otherwise, my children will die of hunger,” he emphasizes. “There is no work here. »