8,300 tech employees have left Israel since start of Gaza war

Up to 8,300 workers in the technology field have left Israel since the launch of its destructive war on the Gaza Strip in October 2023, new data revealed on Wednesday, Anadolu has reported.

A report by the Israel Innovation Authority said that 8,300 tech employees departed the country in the period between October 2023 and July 2024, representing 2.1 per cent of the entire workforce of the technology sector in Israel.

According to the report, the Israeli high-tech industry experienced a decline in the number of employees, with about 5,000 employees leaving the industry in 2024, marking the first time that there has been a fall in at least a decade. Figures showed that the overall number of employees in high-tech in Israel fell to 390,847 in 2024, down by 1.2 per cent from 2023, which affirms the departure of 5,000 tech employees.

More than half of the workforce in Israeli high-tech companies is currently abroad, with 440,000 employees overseas compared with 400,000 in Israel, according to the report.

“The high-tech employment report emphasises the need for continued focused investment in the industry, which is the main growth engine of the Israeli economy,” said Dror Bin, Israel Innovation Authority CEO. He called for taking political measures to allow the return of tech employees to Israel.

Israeli media reports earlier suggested that many Israelis had left the country following the start of the Israeli war on Gaza and its repercussions on the economy and security in Israel.

Over 50,800 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza in a brutal Israeli genocide since October 2023, most of them women and children.

The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants last November for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza. Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.

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