More than 100 people injured in clashes between rival Eritrean groups in Tel Aviv – Video Israel
The Israeli prime minister also orders a plan to deport all African asylum seekers after protests from rival Eritrean groups
Associated Press in Tel Aviv
Israel’s prime minister has said he wants the immediate deportation of Eritreans involved in a violent clash in Tel Aviv and has ordered a plan to deport all African asylum seekers in the country.
Sunday’s comments followed bloody protests by rival Eritrean groups in southern Tel Aviv the day before, in which dozens of people were injured. Eritreans, both supporters and opponents of the Eritrean government, were confronted with lumber, pieces of metal and stones, smashed shop windows and police cars. Israeli police in riot gear fired tear gas, stun grenades and live rounds while officers on horseback tried to control the protesters.
The issue of immigration from Africa has long divided Israel, and its resurgence comes as the country is torn over Benjamin Netanyahu’s judicial reform plan to force people out.
“We want tough measures against the rioters, including the immediate deportation of the participants,” the prime minister told a special ministerial meeting called to deal with the fallout from the violence. Netanyahu called on his ministers to present him with plans “to remove all other illegal invaders,” noting in his remarks that the Supreme Court had rejected some measures aimed at forcing people to leave.
Israel is home to about 25,000 African asylum seekers, mostly from Sudan and Eritrea, who say they have fled conflict or repression. Israel recognizes very few as asylum seekers and says it has no legal obligation to keep them.
The country has tried various tactics to drive them out, including sending some to remote prisons, withholding part of their wages until they agree to leave Israel, or providing cash payments to those who agree to leave. to move to another country somewhere in Africa.
Critics accuse the government of trying to force people to leave the country. Under international law, Israel cannot forcibly send them back to a country where their lives or freedom could be in danger.
Netanyahu said on Sunday he did not believe deportation of Eritrean government supporters would be a problem.
Supporters of the asylum seekers say Israel, a country founded on the rubble of the Holocaust and built by Jewish refugees, should welcome them. Opponents say the asylum seekers have brought crime to the low-income neighborhoods in southern Tel Aviv where they have settled.
The clashes came as Eritrean government supporters celebrated the 30th anniversary of the current ruler’s rise to power, an event held near the Eritrean embassy in south Tel Aviv. Eritrea has one of the world’s worst human rights records and those who have traveled to Israel and elsewhere say they fear death if they were to return.
Critics see Netanyahu’s judicial reform plan as a power grab aimed at weakening the courts and limiting judicial control over government decisions and laws. Supporters say it aims to restore the power of elected representatives and curb what they say is an interventionist and liberal-leaning justice system.
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