Israeli forces briefly hold workers in northern West Bank

TULKARM: Israeli occupation forces Friday evening briefly held a number of Palestinian workers to the west of Attil town, north of the occupied West Bank city of Tulkarm, according to local sources. They said that an occupation army vehicle stopped a vehicle that was transporting Palestinian workers, west of the town, inspected and interrogated them and confiscated their identity cards before briefly holding them. Since the onset of the Israeli genocidal war on Gaza on Oct. 7 last year, Israel has prevented workers from the West Bank from accessing the Israeli labor market. Prior to the genocidal war on Gaza, more than 170,000 Palestinians were working in Israel, constituting an important source of income for the Palestinian economy. Israel does not allow Palestinian workers to pass through Israeli checkpoints and crossings except after obtaining permits from the Israeli army. Also before the Israeli onslaught on Gaza, hundreds of Palestinians worked in Israel without a permit and often police chased and detained them before sending them back to the occupied West Bank where work is more scarce than in Israel and pay is much less. A large number of Palestinians, especially construction workers, used to pass checkpoints every day, facing extreme overcrowding and often waiting for hours in line due inspection procedures as every person must pass through metal turnstiles one-at-a-time. Israeli severely restricts Palestinians' freedom of movement through a complex combination of approximately 100 fixed checkpoints, flying checkpoints, settler-only roads and various other physical obstructions. Source: Palestine news & Information Agency - WAFA