Twenty-eight Thai workers in Israel are urging the government to repatriate them after they were sent back to the so-called "red zone" by their employer, who they say is forcing them to continue working amid the ongoing conflict.
Pongsakorn: Has safety worries
Pongsakorn Intaworn, 31, who hails from Ban Dung district in Udon Thani, claimed during a video call that he and 27 fellow Thai workers at a tomato farm had been abandoned in Yated, a small town in southern Israel 10 kilometres from the Gaza Strip.
He said earlier that their Israeli employer had evacuated the Thai workers to a remote town 200km from Yated on Oct 10. However, on Oct 15, the employer brought them back to the farm and abandoned them.
Now in a red zone where attacks are ongoing, Mr Pongsakorn said he and his fellow workers were concerned about their safety.
"We want to return home. We would like [the Thai authorities] to contact the Royal Thai Embassy in Israel to negotiate with our employer. We do not want to die," he pleaded.
Jaruwan: Short of food
Another Thai worker at the tomato farm, Mr Abe, 35, said their employer rejected their requests to allow them to return to Thailand.
Once they were driven back to Yated after having stayed in a shelter in the other town for only five days, their employer immediately left them there, Mr Abe said.
"We want to ask any Thai official to help us by talking to our employer," he added.
"We are now anxious that any one of us could be hurt because all 28 of us are working amid the conflict."
Meanwhile, in Thailand, Yupin Tongdeenok, a 30-year-old local in Nakhon Phanom province, told the media that her sister-in-law is being forced to work in Israel despite being near the Gaza Strip and the conflict.
The sister-in-law was identified as Jaruwan Chantawong, 35, from Renu Nakhon district of Nakhon Phanom. Ms Yupin said she travelled to Israel four years ago to work on a farm.
Ms Yupin said almost 50 Thai workers were still at the farm with her sister-in-law, most of whom are from the northeastern region.
Apart from their concerns over the nearby conflict, all the workers reportedly face electricity and food shortages.
Their families in Thailand are contacting the Royal Thai Embassy in Israel to help repatriate them.