10 October 2023 at 13:45 PUBLISHED
Following the Palestinian militant group’s threat to kill human captives in its conflict with Israel, the families of Thai laborers held prisoner by Hamas spoke on Tuesday about their concerns for their security.
Since Hamas launched a surprise assault on Israel on Saturday, at least 18 Thais have died and 11 have been captured.
In its assault, Hamas kidnapped about 150 people, and if Israel keeps using airstrikes to strike Gaza, it will do them one by one.
Owat Suriyasri’s father Kanyarat, who is one of those taken, expressed her shock at the news.
She told AFP,” My soul dropped when I learned he was one of the 11 victims taken by Hamas.”
” I’m looking forward to hearing some good news.”
She described Owat, 40, from Si Saket territory in eastern Thailand, as a” quite helpful, attentive, and happy man.”
In 2021, he relocated to Israel in search of better pay in an effort to provide his wife and two children with a better home.
Working overseas pays better than in Thailand, she said, adding that we owe a lot of money.
She promised to tell her husband,” I’ve missed you, and I won’t let you go far away again ,” if she could see him.
I did give him a hug.
” I hope he survives ,” she said.
Anucha Angkaew, the father of Wannida Ma – asa and a contractor on an olive farm, was another of those taken prisoner.
” I’m destroyed. The day he was abducted, I spoke with him. Before it happened, we had a video call, and we spoke usually, she told AFP.
Wannida claimed she was holding out for the safe transfer of her father, who is 28 years old, despite Hamas’ terrible threat to kill its victims.
” I really hope he makes it.” I have a 100 % chance of success. She said,” I am quietly watching the news, waiting to hear some good news.
Anucha, who has a daughter, left his hometown of Udon Thani, an agricultural region in north Thailand, for Israel in March 2022.
In Israel, there are about 30,000 Thai workers, many of whom work in agriculture.
Some workers from Thailand’s impoverished rural northeast are hoping to gain higher pay so they can raise a nest egg and make their families’ existence better back home.
They’ve been open to being taken advantage of. According to a 2015 Human Rights Watch review, migrant workers were paid less than the legal minimum wage and housed in subpar conditions.
– Waiting for assistance.
Many Vietnamese families are having a difficult time waiting for word of missing loved ones.
Adisak Pengsuwan, her niece who had been employed since March 2022 on a plantation in the Gaza Strip, was no longer in contact with her family, according to Jittawan Promsuludorn.
She claimed that since the early days of Tuesday morning, they have not heard from him.
She told AFP,” Earlier, he told us that all of his companions had been shot to death, but that we were fortunate to be able to flee to a vault.
” There was no foods or potable water, and he was stuck in a bunker with the other 19 Thais.” He admitted to us that he was afraid for his career and wanted to go get some food and water.
Adisak is awaiting assistance from Thai authorities, she claimed.
” Our family, especially his mother, is currently upset, and she checks in with me every hour if I hear from her son ,” she said.