The debate taking place in the government and cabinet during these difficult times, on the issue of returning Palestinian workers to their workplaces in Israel, takes place more as an ideological stereotype discussion than as a practical and practical discussion.
It has two concepts: the first is led by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who did not need the events of Black Saturday to cling to their perception, and the second, which is based on preventing the collapse of various industries and fields, especially the construction industry, which faces a real and existential danger.
Instead of holding a professional discussion in order to reach a solution that will help Israel save vital industries and professions alongside the Palestinian Authority – which in the meantime excels in security coordination in order to prevent conflict in the territories and provide a dignified livelihood to tens of thousands of Palestinian workers, who have been accustomed to working and earning a living in Israel for more than five decades – some politicians choose to radicalize their positions, apparently knowing that this will help them in the next election campaign.
Israel is not doing the Palestinian workers who come in to work and build the state, and they are not doing a favor when they come here to work and earn a living. There is a mutual and common interest here, security, economic and social. An oversight and control mechanism must be established that will reduce to the brim any possibility of carrying out attacks.
Foreign workers in Israel are transparent, and Palestinian workers are in an inferior position. In the eyes of the Israeli public, both Jewish and Arab, they are considered a cheaper, more available and more needy labor force, but they lack any rights beyond the salary that every worker receives at the end of the working day, and this perception will not change even if it is decided to grant entry permits to tens of thousands. Therefore, what is needed is a change in general perception.
On the security level and immediately, in order to find a solution to the distress of several industries in Israel, especially construction, intensive advocacy activities are required among Palestinian workers in Arabic.
Instead of holding a professional discussion in order to reach a solution that will help Israel save vital industries and professions alongside the Palestinian Authority, some politicians choose to radicalize their positions, apparently knowing that this will help them in the next election campaign
The argument that there is no open condemnation of Black Saturday among Palestinians is logical and justified, but it is necessary to understand the distress and pressure they are under, especially since the Palestinian Authority territories are not the place where pluralism and freedom of expression can be boasted.
From a security perspective, the best and most appropriate solution must be found, which will ensure zero security involvement of Palestinian workers who wish to work in Israel. And from an economic perspective, every day that passes is a huge loss for the country's economy.
Whoever came up with the idea of foreign workers probably doesn't understand the implications, especially since every foreign worker takes care to spend most of his money from here, and his contribution to the local economy is zero – in stark contrast to Palestinian workers, whose money is returned to Israel in one way or another, because the two economies are intertwined in almost every field and on almost every issue. Hence, the solution is one and clear, and must be pragmatic.
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