Thailand’s workers in Israel hunker down as Iran strikes targets across Gulf

South China Morning Post · Mar 2, 2026 · Collected from RSS

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With memories still raw from the deaths of scores of its nationals during the Gaza war, Thailand has issued an alert to its estimated 110,000 citizens working across the Middle East as the US-Israel conflict with Iran rages across the region.Around 60,000 Thais are working in Israel’s fields, factories and shops, drawn by higher ‘danger money’ pay than what they could get back home and in competing markets. Thai authorities have said that an additional 250 Thais are believed to still be in Iran, while tens of thousands more are working across the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Abu Dhabi and Qatar.Some are believed to be working illegally, beyond official reach and registration.A Filipino carer, Mary Ann V. De Vera, died in Israel amid the ongoing conflict. The deaths of four other migrant workers from South Asia - one in Bahrain and three in the UAE so far, from shrapnel presumed to be from Iranian missiles and drones, have further sharpened focus on the particular risks facing the South Asian and Southeast Asian migrant workforce based in the Middle East.The bitter experience of Thailand, which is the largest source of migrant labour to Israel, during the Israel-Gaza war, has shown how the region’s volatility could badly expose its nationals.Forty-six Thais were killed during the Hamas assault on Israel in 2023, which triggered the war. Dozens more were taken hostage inside Gaza. Several died in Hamas captivity, while 23 were eventually released and returned to Thailand.