Under the United Nations Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees from 1951, a refugee is a person who (according to the formal definition in article 1A of this Convention), "owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality and is unable to, or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to, avail himself of the protection of that country".

Who are the refugees arriving to Israel?

Israel played a great part in helping define refugees and their rights in the 1951 Convention; yet, Israel does not act according to these definitions, and evades its responsibilities towards refugees residing within its borders.

There are currently 35,000 refugees living in Israel who have escaped from various African countries. This number includes families who survived the genocide in Darfur, men, women and children who escaped years of governmental persecution, individuals fleeing for their lives from the dictatorship in Eritrea, and people from other African countries where civil wars are raging on.

Most asylum seekers arrived to Israel via Egypt, a country that accepted African refugees for years. But research and testimonials demonstrate that asylum seekers’ lives in Egypt are very difficult, due to racism and governmental persecution. As a result, many of these refugees were forced to flee Egypt as well, dodging Egyptian bullets in order to seek a safe haven in Israel.

Refugees in Israel

The refugees who have arrived in Israel are dealing with a difficult reality. Israel does not have a clear policy regarding these people’s status and rights, and there is no official authority responsible for dealing with them. The State does not facilitate the access to the Refugee Status Determination (RSD) process anchored in international law; therefore, the status and future of refugees and asylum seekers is unclear.

Thousands of asylum seekers are held in custody in detention centers with no release date. Others are living in Israel with no official status, thus being denied work permits, access to medical and social services, legal aid or housing arrangements. This impossible situation has led to great economical and emotional distress, negatively influencing the refugees’ and asylum seekers’ ability to recover from their emotional and physical traumas.