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Work in Israeli settlements means high risks, no safety net for Palestinian laborers

Most of the 36,000 Palestinians who work in Israeli settlements across the West Bank lack basic benefits including personal protection equipment and have little to no recourse when the worst happens.
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Naser Qaswal is a 48-year-old Palestinian carpenter who worked for 25 years in the Eli Zahav settlement just outside of Kafr al-Dik in the occupied West Bank, northeast of Jerusalem. Until two years ago, Qaswal was the main breadwinner for his wife and five small children.

In 2017, hearing loss forced Qaswal to leave his job. He was completely deaf in one ear and with only 20% hearing in the other. He also suffered chronic lower back pain that prevents him from driving and standing more than an hour at a time. Both injuries were clearly work related — the result of his two and a half decades of work in Eli Zahav.

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