On June 24, a missile strike that hit a workers’ dormitory in Tel Aviv during renewed hostilities between Israel and Iran sparked online concerns towards Chinese migrant workers' situations in Israel. Though no Chinese workers were killed in that particular incident, it starkly highlighted their precarious conditions in a conflict zone. A wave of attention sparked on Chinese social media, some of it driven by unverified reports of casualties and discrimination, such as claims that Chinese workers were barred from entering bomb shelters. Nevertheless, the reports resonated with a public increasingly concerned about Chinese nationals abroad, drawing both state media and independent journalists to scrutinize the labor conditions more deeply.

An incomplete census suggests there are currently over 100,000 Chinese construction workers in Israel, who live in deeply marginalized conditions. Many are burdened by debt from exorbitant recruitment fees, sometimes over 100,000 yuan, making returning home financially unfeasible. Most are employed through private intermediaries, lacking legal protections, and marked by low pay, overwork, and intimidation.