A military spokesman said on Monday night that 21,000 Palestinian workers would be allowed in from Tuesday and that 8,000 Palestinian traders could also enter Israel.

The Palestinian territories have been sealed off, almost continuously for the past month to minimise the risks of anti-Israeli attacks during Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar at the end of September, and the recent week-long Jewish festival of Sukkot, or the Feast of Tabernacles.

Israel has maintained tight restrictions on the movement of Palestinians from the territories since the Army killed two top militants of the radical Palestinian Islamic movement Hamas on September 10 in the West Bank.

In normal periods, 60,000 Palestinians with work permits travel regularly to Israel. Palestinianleaders say even a partial blockade of the West Bank or the Gaza Strip causes wage losses of up to two million dollars a day for the Palestinians.