Ten people from India were rescued from an Arab village near Jerusalem by the IDF in a complex overnight operation, the Population and Immigration Authority announced on Thursday.

The foreign workers had originally traveled to Israel to work and were exploited by Palestinians from the village of Az-Za’ayyem, who promised them work and then stole their passports to allow them to easily pass through checkpoints to enter Israel.

Meanwhile, the foreign workers were stuck in the village for a month with no work and no way to enter Israel without their passports.

The IDF discovered the ruse and a rescue operation was planned in coordination with the Justice Ministry and the Population Authority. The workers were transferred to a safe location, their passports were returned, and Population authorities are working to regulate their workers’ status.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)