Netanyahu calls for deportation of Eritrean refugees following violent Tel Aviv riots

Benjamin Netanyahu has said the solution to last weekend’s violent clashes between Eritrean refugees in Tel Aviv is deportation. 

The Eritrean embassy was set to hold an event on Saturday marking the 30th anniversary of the regime, led by dictator Isaias Afwerki, which caused widespread anger among Eritrean refugees in Israel.

Opponents of the regime began demonstrating from the early morning hours, which quickly led to clashes with regime supporters.

Over 150 people were injured on Saturday as opponents and supporters of the Eritrean regime clashed, leaving private cars, police cars, and shops vandalised. Rioters beat each other with iron and wooden clubs and threw stones at each other, as well as on police.

The riots spread across several parts of South Tel Aviv as Police attempted to get the situation under control, firing tear gas, stun grenades, rubber bullets and live fire at rioters.

Some 50 police officers were injured, while at least 11 Eritreans were taken to hospital with gunshot wounds. “What happened yesterday in Tel Aviv crossed a red line,” Netanyahu said on Sunday morning.

“This morning we discussed the massive infiltration of illegal workers from Africa. This is a tangible threat to the character and future of the State of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state. In order to handle this, we have done two things. First, build a barrier to stop the massive migration. Second, deal with the infiltrators who have already entered the country,” he added.

“Regarding the barrier, I insisted and in the end we built it, my governments, the fence along the Egyptian border, which has blocked, according to a cautious estimate, at least one million infiltrators. This problem is not over. Africa will double its population in the next 20 years.”

The prime minister also said that Israel has deliberately not followed a UN proposal which he said would give citizenship to some 16,000 refugees.

“The solution is expatriation, voluntarily or by other means. Unfortunately, the (Supreme) court has not allowed us to take five such steps, including recently, the deposit law. Today…. we sought several quick measures, including the deportation of 1,000 supporters of the regime who participated in these disturbances. Of course, they have no claim to refugee status. They support this regime. If they support the regime so much, they would do well to return to their country of origin,” Netanyahu concluded.

Israel has been criticised by several human rights groups as well as the UN for its handling of African refugees seeking asylum, with thousands waiting years to get their case processed.

This means that most of the roughly 18,000 refugees from Eritrea, for example, can work but have no status and no rights.

In 2022, the outgoing Representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Israel, Damtew Dessalegne, called the status-quo situation vis a vis the refugees “unsustainable.”

“We must find a sustainable and humane solution to give the refugees protection according to international standards, while taking Israel’s demographic interests into consideration,” Dessalegne said.