Thousands of protesters gathered in Rabin Square in Tel Aviv on Saturday evening to demonstrate against the imminent deportation of illegal African migrants, an issue that has divided the Israeli public in recent months.
The High Court of Justice has already issued an injunction preventing the government from deporting illegal migrants to third-party African countries – such as Rwanda, a proposed alternative to forcing the Africans back to their home nations – until the government submits its response to a pending petition against the planned deportations.
The Israeli government says the migrants have to leave Israel by April 1 in exchange for $3,500 and a plane ticket, or they will be incarcerated indefinitely.
The Africans, nearly all from dictatorial Eritrea and war-torn Sudan, say they feel great appreciation for Israel, coupled with dread over the looming expulsions.
A number of organizations worked together to organize the protest Saturday, including the Hotline for Refugees and Migrants, South Tel Aviv Against Deportation, and students from the Stop the Deportation group.
The supporters of the government policy seeking to deport the illegal migrants argue that the migrants are not fleeing threats but are in Israel to find work. They claim that the migrants are menacing the local population, particularly in the poorer neighborhoods of southern Tel Aviv where they are largely concentrated.
Opponents of the deportation policy assert that the migrants are in fact fleeing dangerous situations in their home countries and actually pose no threat to the residents of southern Tel Aviv.
The demonstrators Saturday called for the government to invest in the rehabilitation of the southern Tel Aviv neighborhoods, which are generally neglected besides having become hotspots for clashes between Israelis and Africans.
Shula Keshet of the group South Tel Aviv Against Deportation is one of a few residents of south Tel Aviv who oppose the deportation efforts.
Keshet, a resident of the Neve Shaanan neighborhood, said, "We need to roll up our sleeves and direct funds into addressing the historical problems of the [south Tel Aviv] neighborhoods and the exploitation and injustice that caused them."
"Now is when it's most important for us to say to politicians: 'Don't turn us, the residents of south Tel Aviv, into hangers on which you can drape the disgrace of this deportation," Keshet said.
Education Minister Naftali Bennett said Saturday that the government must not "fold" in the face of the anti-deportation campaign and that "the rule is simple: Refugees who fled danger will be taken in. Illegal laborers will leave."
