JERUSALEM, May 3 (Xinhua) -- The number of jobseekers in Israel surged more than 2.5 times to about 396,000 by the end of March, compared with the end of February when the U.S.-Israel-Iran war broke out, Israel's Employment Service reported Sunday.

Around 257,000 people registered as new jobseekers in March, making up about 65 percent of the total. Job vacancies fell by 16.8 percent, leaving only 0.32 openings per jobseeker, down from 0.92 in February, it reported.

Women, young people under 34, and non-academic workers were the most affected, it added.

The fighting began on Feb. 28 and lasted about 40 days before a ceasefire between the warring parties took effect in early April. The Employment Service noted that the spike in joblessness may be temporary, with recovery expected if the ceasefire continues. ■