Israel increases Eilat work permits for Jordanian workers by 33%

The permits for the Jordanians are designed to allow them to work in the hotel industry in the southern city of Eilat, which is close to the border with Jordan.

By TOVAH LAZAROFF
The Dan hotel in Eilat (photo credit: Wikimedia Commons)
The Dan hotel in Eilat
(photo credit: Wikimedia Commons)
Israel agreed on Thursday to increase by 33% the number of Jordanian day workers who can be employed at hotels in Eilat to 2,000 from 1,500.
It’s the first such increase since 2014, the Foreign Ministry said.
The permits for the Jordanians are designed to allow them to work in the hotel industry in the southern city of Eilat, which is close to the border with Jordan.
They enter and exit Israel daily, returning home to Jordan at night.
The agreement for the additional workers was signed Thursday between the Kingdom of Jordan, the Foreign Ministry and Israel’s Population and Immigration Authority.
According to the Foreign Ministry, it is part of the Jordanian hotel workers project that advanced ties between both countries through economic and social cooperative initiatives.
Last year a Jordanian was indicted for attacking and moderately wounding two Israelis in Eilat with a hammer, in what police have said was terror attack.
Sara Rubenstein contributed to this report.