According to Palestinian officials, more than 1,180 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli settlers or soldiers in the occupied West Bank since October 2023. [Getty]

As Israeli military raids and settler pogroms intensify across the occupied West Bank, Israel has suddenly moved to reopen jobs for thousands of Palestinian workers in Israeli settlements, a decision that appears to sit uneasily alongside its tightening military restrictions in the territory.

On Sunday, the Hebrew daily Israel Hayom reported that Israel will allow Palestinian workers to return to settlements and their industrial zones from Tuesday after months of being barred from entry under an order issued by the commander of the Israeli army’s Central Command, Major General Avi Blot.

Back then, the Israeli authorities had justified the ban as a measure to “reduce friction” between Palestinians and settlers following the outbreak of the Gaza war.

However, the current decision comes at a time when Israeli violence in the West Bank has reached some of its highest levels in years.

According to Palestinian officials, more than 1,180 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli settlers or soldiers in the occupied West Bank since October 2023.

Meanwhile, UN figures show that at least 77 Palestinians, including 18 children, have been killed since the start of 2026 alone, while more than 1,330 settler attacks have been documented during the same period.

The repeated Israeli violence has also forced dozens of Palestinian families from their homes.

Against this backdrop, Israel’s decision has prompted questions about its underlying motives. Is it driven primarily by labour shortages inside the Israeli economy, or is it part of a broader strategy to contain unrest in the occupied West Bank without addressing its political causes?

Why are Palestinian workers important?

Before the Israeli genocidal war on Gaza, around 165,000 Palestinians worked inside Israel and in Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.

Israeli estimates put the number of workers holding permits at roughly 130,000, while tens of thousands more worked without official authorisation.

Palestinian figures indicate that about 30,000 Palestinians were employed in settlements, while more than 115,000 crossed daily into Israel before work permits were suspended after 7 October 2023.

The economic impact of these jobs extends far beyond individual households. Palestinian economists estimate that Palestinian workers’ wages accounted for nearly 20 per cent of Palestinian GDP and brought more than US$4 billion into the Palestinian economy in 2022.

At the same time, key sectors of Israel’s economy, including construction, agriculture and manufacturing, have long relied on Palestinian labour, which employers often regard as experienced and less costly than imported foreign workers, according to Israeli media outlets.

A security calculation

Palestinian political analyst Akram Attallah argues that Israel’s decision cannot be understood purely through the lens of labour shortages.

“Israel recognises that continuing to suffocate the Palestinian economy while military operations and settler attacks escalate could push the West Bank toward a broader explosion that it does not want at this stage,” he told The New Arab.

He said the Israeli security establishment has increasingly warned of deteriorating economic and social conditions in the occupied territory, prompting the government to use work permits as “a tool to ease tensions and keep them within manageable limits.”

According to Attallah, the move aligns with a long-standing Israeli approach of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to “managing the conflict rather than resolving it” by offering limited economic incentives while avoiding any meaningful political process.

However, he cautioned against viewing the decision as a significant improvement for Palestinian workers.

“The atmosphere of incitement and racism inside Israel has intensified considerably since the war,” he said, arguing that Palestinian workers remain vulnerable to discrimination, harassment and arbitrary dismissal even if they are allowed to return to work.

Labour shortages, but on Israel’s terms

Ramallah-based Palestinian political analyst Abdul Majid Sweilem believes the decision reflects both economic necessity and security calculations.

“The Israeli economy has still not managed to replace Palestinian workers, particularly in construction and agriculture, despite recruiting labourers from several countries,” he told TNA. “Maintaining complete closure has therefore become economically expensive.”

But Sweilem argues that Israel continues to treat work permits as a political instrument rather than a right.

“Israel does not grant workers a natural right to employment,” he said. “It expands or restricts permits according to political and security developments. The latest decision represents flexible crisis management rather than a change in policy.”

He added that allowing Palestinians back into settlements while military incursions continue across Palestinian cities and settler violence escalates exposes a contradiction in Israeli policy.

“On one hand, Israel continues creating new realities on the ground through settlement expansion and violence. On the other hand, it seeks to prevent the total collapse of the Palestinian economy because of the security consequences that could follow,” he explained.

Sweilem argued that Israeli authorities are concerned that rising unemployment and the possible weakening of the Palestinian Authority could push more young Palestinians toward confrontation.

In his view, the latest move is another example of Israel’s long-standing “carrot and stick” approach in the occupied West Bank, combining limited economic concessions with continued settlement expansion and military restrictions.