Israel releases hundreds of Palestinian workers who say they have been held in an Israeli-run jail since the Hamas onslaught on October 7 and the ensuing war.
The workers are dropped off by buses near Gaza and walk into the southern edge of the enclave through the Kerem Shalom border crossing.
The workers are among what Israeli rights groups believe are thousands of laborers marooned in Israel since the outbreak of the war.
The rights groups say the workers have had their work permits revoked and any trace of their status wiped from their records, leaving them vulnerable and in legal limbo.
Some of those walking into Gaza say they were held at Ofer, an Israeli-run detention center in the West Bank.
One of those released, Mohammed Shalaya, says treatment was bad during the first five to six days but that conditions then improved.
Shalaya says he had worked at a quarry in northern Israel. He says he and the other workers were forced to hand over their money, cellphones and identity cards after being detained and didn’t get their possessions back before being dropped off near Gaza.
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From the Liveblog of
Friday, November 3, 2023
