By: Zahran Maali

NABLUS, April 15, 2026 (WAFA) – Garbage containers were never meant to be a place to search for life. Yet for Khaled, they have become a bitter lifeline, driven there by unemployment and financial hardships amid the harsh living conditions facing workers in the occupied West Bank since the start of the Israeli aggression on October 7, 2023.

Thirty-seven-year-old Khaled (a pseudonym), from a village near Nablus and a father of two children aged 8 and 5, recently found himself crammed alongside 67 other workers inside a garbage compactor truck, attempting to reach his workplace in the Arab city of Kafr Qasim inside the 1948 territories through a military checkpoint west of Salfit.

Khaled described those moments as “inhumane,” saying: “The silence inside the sealed truck container turned into muffled screams, fear of being discovered, and terror of suffocation due to lack of oxygen.”

He added that the broker told them the trip would not exceed 40 minutes, but it stretched into hours of humiliation, ending with their detention and the physical assault and beating of a number of those on board.

These risky attempts come at a high cost. Smuggling brokers exploit workers’ need, charging between 1,000 and 1,400 shekels per worker—often paid in advance—for a dangerous route that may end in detention, abuse, or even being killed. Yet the difficult living conditions they and their families are facing compel them to take such risks.

As Israeli occupation authorities continue to prevent tens of thousands of workers from entering the 1948 territories since October 2023, attempts to cross through dangerous means have increased. These include climbing the separation wall, passing through water culverts, hiding inside trucks and ambulances, and even packing into garbage trucks.

Field observations indicate that workers resort to such methods after losing their sources of income and facing a lack of opportunities within the occupied West Bank, pushing them toward harsh choices despite their awareness of the risks.

Khaled recounts that he had worked for more than 20 years inside the 1948 territories, relying on his income to support his family, before his livelihood was almost entirely halted following the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip, prompting him to search for alternatives amid a suffocating economic reality.

He said that days pass without a stable income amid growing financial obligations, after exhausting his savings during the first year of the war, adding that he tried to find work within the West Bank without success, due to high unemployment and limited opportunities resulting from the occupation’s policy of suffocating the Palestinian economy.

Despite the risks, Khaled has made multiple attempts to reach his workplace through various means. At times, he managed to work for short periods, allowing him to secure a limited income for his family.

The latest of these attempts took place earlier this week, when he boarded a garbage truck with a group of workers, before they were stopped at an Israeli military checkpoint west of Salfit, where the occupation police halted the truck and opened its container, discovering them inside. They were then detained and subjected to abuse and held for hours before being released, while others remained in detention.

Khaled describes the experience as one of the most difficult in his life, amid severe overcrowding and the absence of the most basic humanitarian conditions inside the truck, noting that what was said to be a short journey turned into hours of fear and suffocation.

Despite everything, he stressed that he will continue trying to secure a livelihood for his children amid the lack of prospects, saying: “To live a decent life, we need 3,000 shekels a month, but there is no work and no possibility of starting a project under these difficult conditions.”

This comes as the continued ban imposed by Israeli occupation authorities on workers entering the 1948 territories has deprived hundreds of thousands of Palestinians of their income, leading to a sharp rise in unemployment rates in the occupied West Bank, which is already strained by occupation measures.

Trade union estimates indicate that this crisis has created a suffocating economic reality, pushing some workers to risk their lives in search of job opportunities amid the absence of viable alternatives.

According to the Palestinian General Federation of Trade Unions, approximately $2.5 million has been provided, with support from the International Labour Organization, to assist Gaza workers who were staying in shelters in the West Bank, covering their basic needs. In addition, financial assistance of 700 shekels was distributed in installments under the supervision of the Ministry of Labor.

The union said that the employment projects launched subsequently covered only about 5% of the unemployment rate, underscoring the depth of the crisis.

For his part, Saeed Omran, a member of the federation’s media department, described the situation as a “humanitarian catastrophe,” noting that unemployment rates have reached around 40%, equivalent to approximately 550,000 unemployed individuals.

He added that the crisis has pushed hundreds of thousands into debt amid declining incomes and mounting obligations, noting that dozens of people were killed while attempting to reach workplaces, in addition to thousands of detention cases and the exploitation of workers by brokers.

Omran called for urgent measures, including easing the burden on workers, supporting local production, and strengthening social protection, warning that the continuation of the current situation is pushing more workers to risk their lives.

In an effort to mitigate the crisis, the Palestine Monetary Authority, in cooperation with the Ministry of Labor, launched the second phase of the “Bader” program, valued at 40 million shekels, to support workers who lost their jobs through interest-free financing for projects.

The program was launched in line with directives from President Mahmoud Abbas and Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa. In its second phase, it targets workers who lost their jobs inside the 1948 territories and in the colonies, as well as those who lost employment in the West Bank, aiming to help them establish or expand their own projects. Beneficiaries are able to obtain financing from banks and lending institutions without bearing any fees or interest.

T.R.