Why Palestinians Prefer To Work In Israel

Palestinians in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip are excited. Israeli authorities have decided to allow thousands of them to work in Israel. The news about the Israeli decision spread like wildfire, prompting tens of thousands of Palestinians to converge on the offices of the chambers of commerce throughout the Gaza Strip in the hope of obtaining a permit to work in Israel.

The scenes of Palestinian scrambling to receive permits to work in Israel have angered and embarrassed many Palestinians and Arabs, many of whom believe that Palestinian leaders are not doing enough to end the suffering of the Palestinians.

The fact that a large number of Palestinians are desperate to work in Israel is a sign of the failure of Hamas and the Palestinian Authority to improve the living conditions of their people despite the massive sums of money they receive from various sources, including the United, European Union and United Nations.

Instead of providing job opportunities to the young people and university graduates, Hamas, an offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood organization, has been preoccupied with amassing and manufacturing weapons and digging tunnels that would be used to attack Israel.

Instead of building schools and hospitals and industrial zones, Hamas has been investing millions of dollars in arming and training its military group, Izaddin al-Qassam. Hamas prefers to spend money on any Palestinian who is prepared to join the jihad (holy war) on Israel than on an unemployed university graduate in the Gaza Strip.

Hamas has no problem allowing Palestinians to work in the "Zionist entity" as long as its leaders are enjoying a luxurious life in Qatar.

The only problem Hamas and its supporters have is when photos and videos of the desperate job-seekers appear on various social media platforms. Hamas and its supporters are so embarrassed that they are now beginning to float around conspiracy theories regarding those behind the documentation of the Palestinians who rushed to apply for permits to work in Israel.

The head of the General Federation of Palestinian Trade Unions, Sami al-Amsi, said that "there are certain parties that are not innocent" behind the lines of thousands of workers in front of the chambers of commerce in the Gaza Strip. He is apparently trying to create the impression that anti-Palestinian parties sent the thousands of workers to apply for jobs in order to embarrass the Palestinians.

The dire economic situation in the Gaza Strip -- 65% unemployment and 80% poverty -- was the main reason, al-Amsi said, for the Palestinians' "thirst" to work in Israel.

Instead of holding Hamas responsible for the unemployment and poverty, al-Amsi and other Palestinians choose to blame Israel.

This view is in keeping with the longstanding habit of the Palestinian leadership to evade their responsibility for thievery and non-governance by blaming Israel for everything.

Many Palestinians and Arabs, however, are no longer buying this nonsense and know exactly who is trying to help and who has not done a thing to end their suffering.

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/17859/palestinians-work-israel