Since the outbreak of the war in Israel on October 7th, hundreds of thousands of Palestinian workers from Yehudah and Shomron have been barred from entering Israel. The security reasons for the move are obvious but the lack of workers has negatively affected many industries in Israel, especially the construction and agricultural industries. To solve the problem without endangering Israel, the Israeli government is finalizing a plan to permanently bar Palestinian workers and end Israel’s dependence on them, Kan News reported on Sunday evening. Israel will bring in about 25,500 workers from Sri Lanka, 20,000 workers from China, 17,000 workers from India, 13,000 workers from Thailand, and 6,000 workers from Moldova. In addition, an initiative has been launched to incentivize Israelis to work in the construction and agricultural industries. The plan will require new deals with these countries. The diplomatic groundwork is already being carried out by the Foreign Ministry in cooperation with the Finance, Interior and Labor ministries. The initial plan had been approved by Finance Minister Betzalel Smotrich and the final plan is scheduled to be presented to the economic cabinet in about two weeks. (YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)