She doesn’t understand the reasons behind the conflict in the Holy Land, thousands of miles away from her, nor does she know the identities of those involved. All she desires is for her son to come back home.
In the impoverished northeastern region of Thailand, surrounded by cassava fields and the sweltering heat, Watsana Yojampa is almost done preparing her son’s new house for his return. She has set up a room for her daughter, which will soon be painted in her favorite color, purple, as she loves Care Bears. The house will also have luxurious light fixtures and air conditioning.
Within a span of two years, her son Anucha Angkaew, 28, managed to save enough money working as an avocado farmhand in Israel to finance the construction of the house. On October 6th, Ms. Watsana shared different options for bathroom tiles with him during a video call. He was keen on having a “modern house” and promised to inform her of his preferred shade of gray.
A day after that call, Hamas attackers struck Israeli communities near the Gaza border. Once the violence ceased, the Thai Foreign Ministry reported that 32 Thai agricultural workers had been killed and at least 22 had been taken hostage. Another count puts the total number of Thais killed, kidnapped, or feared dead at 80.
Mr. Anucha was among the Thai hostages whose pictures were shared on social media, displaying their terrified faces with a masked man pointing an assault rifle at them. His seven-year-old daughter remains unaware of what happened in Israel. The family told her that her father’s phone is broken and that’s why he has stopped checking in daily.
“Why are they hurting Thais? Why have they kidnapped my son?” Ms. Watsana questioned visiting journalists from The New York Times. “We have no association with their war.”
Thailand is the largest source of foreign agricultural labor in Israel, with approximately 30,000 citizens working there before the Hamas attack. Nearly a month later, the situation of Thai farmworkers remains entangled in bureaucratic mystery and diplomatic uncertainty.
Families of those missing or believed to be held hostage have not received any communication from Thai or Israeli government officials.
Many relatives in Thailand have no knowledge of whether their loved ones are alive or dead, and they’re unsure of how to find out.
“It’s understandable to be confused in the days following the Hamas terrorism, but it’s been almost a month now,” said Yahel Kurlander, a migration expert at Tel-Hai College in Israel, who has helped create lists of Thai victims.
Parnpree Bahiddha-Nukara, the Thai foreign minister, traveled to the Middle East and stated on Friday that Iran, Egypt, and Qatar were working as intermediaries with Hamas to free the hostages. An earlier Israeli count listed 54 Thai hostages out of over 220 people believed to have been taken to Gaza.
On Wednesday, Ms. Watsana received a call from a local Thai official informing her that she needed to provide a DNA sample. She is unsure if it’s because her son has passed away or if it’s part of a routine process. The official also couldn’t provide any clarification on the matter.
“At this point, I just need any news at all,” Ms. Watsana expressed.
On October 7th, while relaxing on his day off near the barbed-wire border with Gaza, Kriangsak Phansuri heard what sounded like rockets flying overhead. When Kriangsak looked outside, he saw men in military attire. As they approached, he noticed that they all had beards. Assuming they were Israeli soldiers there to protect the Thais, Kriangsak and the other farmers blocked the door with boxes of freshly harvested potatoes.
Eventually, the men in uniform left and the Thai workers emerged, waiting for assistance that never arrived. Within hours, more militants returned, this time dressed in black. Kriangsak and others scattered into a nearby orange grove. Gunshots could be heard through the fruit trees. An accented voice jeered at them in Thai, shouting “sawasdee,” which means hello. The Thais remained silent.
They didn’t leave the orchard until the next morning.
“The rockets didn’t frighten me,” Kriangsak shared. “But this attack, I knew I couldn’t stay in Israel any longer.”
Kriangsak returned home to Udon Thani province on a repatriation flight organized by the Thai government.
The Thai farmhands working in fields near Gaza contribute to a significant portion of Israel’s fresh produce supply. Many come from the dusty villages of Isaan in northeastern Thailand, particularly Udon Thani, which was once an American air base during the Vietnam War and later converted into a civilian airport. This airport has been the pathway for countless workers seeking to escape poverty. Generations of Udon Thani men have found employment in the Middle East and Asia. Additionally, thousands of Western men have settled in Udon Thani, further bridging different cultures.
Overseas jobs, particularly in Israel, are highly sought after as wages can be at least five times higher compared to their home country. However, Thai migrants soon discover that the orange groves, strawberry fields, and avocado farms are within range of rockets fired from Gaza.
Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system does not cover sparsely populated farms. Since they are considered temporary workers, Thais can be housed in caravans and containers without the anti-rocket shelters required in other homes. In 2021, two Thai workers were killed in a Hamas rocket strike.
Nevertheless, the money earned in Israel can be life-changing, and despite approximately 7,200 Thai workers returning home since the Hamas attack, many remain. The danger persists. On October 10th, two Thai farmhands were killed by a Hamas rocket strike from Gaza, according to local emergency services. On October 21st, two Thai workers were injured by Hezbollah rockets in northern Israel.
“It’s demanding work with long hours, and rockets fly above our heads,” said Sawaeng Phathee from Udon Thani, who had worked on an Israeli farm for the maximum contract length of 63 weeks. “But once we have the money in our hands, the exhaustion disappears.”
Sawaeng’s nephew, Kiattisak Patee, is believed to have been kidnapped and taken to Gaza alongside Mr. Anucha. On Wednesday, Kiattisak’s father, Khamsee Phathee, once a construction worker in Saudi Arabia, sat in the newly completed house that his son financed with his earnings from working on a chicken farm in Israel. A recently purchased car and tractor awaited outside.
“I visit sacred places to pray, and I consult fortune tellers for guidance,” Mr. Khamsee said. “I am utterly powerless to do anything else.”
While Thai workers assert that they have no involvement in a conflict that has simmered for decades, their presence in Israel coincided with a movement to replace Palestinian workers with foreign labor following the first intifada uprising by Palestinians.
Although most Thai farmworkers have legal status in Israel, an estimated 7,000 out of the 30,000 are undocumented, according to labor groups. These workers enter Israel with valid visas but either overstay or change employers without notifying officials.
Gong Saelao, a member of the Hmong ethnic minority and one of Thailand’s poorest demographics, relied on borrowed money to finance his journey to Israel. In Thailand, Gong earned approximately $10 a day transporting fruits and vegetables, whereas the daily wage in Israel was about $50.
Gong’s wife, Suntharee Saelee, resides in a cinder block home with a dirt floor in northern Thailand near the borders of Myanmar and Laos. On October 7th, her husband posted on Facebook about what he believed was a rocket attack. Ms. Suntharee chatted with him, urging him to remain safe. That evening, when news of the Hamas assaults came out, she called Gong repeatedly, but there was no answer.
After a few days, as victims’ lists circulated on Facebook groups, Ms. Suntharee worried that her husband’s undocumented status would mean he would go unrecognized. She visited the local employment bureau, which had advertised the job opportunity in Israel, only to find that they had no information.
A week after the Hamas attack, a Times reporter sent Ms. Suntharee a still image from a circulating video…