Holot, ISRAEL: Hundreds of African migrants protested Thursday outside an Israeli prison where at least nine others have been incarcerated under Israel’s controversial new policy of expelling or imprisoning them.
They marched a short distance from the Holot open detention center to Saharonim Prison, chanting slogans and carrying signs demanding the prisoners’ release.
They said they were on a hunger strike and vowed to continue it until a solution is reached.
Israel is preparing to deport thousands of Eritreans and Sudanese who entered the country illegally and who do not have asylum claims under examination.
The government has offered them a choice: leave by early April to their homelands or a third country, or face indefinite detention in prison.
As many could face danger if returned to their home countries, Israel is proposing to send them to an unnamed third country, which migrants and aid workers say is Rwanda or Uganda.
Israel plans to start by tackling the cases of single men who have not submitted asylum applications, or whose applications have been rejected.
Authorities on Tuesday transferred the first Eritrean detainees, detained at the Holot open detention center, to Saharonim Prison after they refused to leave the country.
Israeli authorities said nine had been jailed, while migrants said the number was 12.
Hundreds of detainees at the Holot center went on hunger strike Tuesday night in protest at the move.
Clasping their hands over their heads, protesters on Thursday chanted: “We are not criminals, we are refugees! No deportation, no more prison, we are not for sale, we are asylum seekers! Bring back our brothers!“
Muluebrhan Ghebrihimet, a 27-year-old Eritrean, said that when he arrived in Israel six years ago, he had filed an asylum application, but it was rejected.
“We are here to seek asylum, not to work or become rich,” he said.
He did not know when he would be sent to prison.
A wave of African migrants arrived in Israel after 2007, crossing the border from Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula.
The porous border has since been largely sealed off, putting an end to arrivals.
Migrants settled in the poor neighborhoods of southern Tel Aviv, the country’s commercial capital, but their presence has caused friction with some Israelis.
Religious and conservative leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, have presented Muslim and Christian migrants as a threat to Israel’s Jewish identity.
The government, considered the most rightwing in Israel’s history, has been roundly condemned by the United Nations’ refugee agency, academics and rights groups over its migrant plan.
According to interior ministry figures, there are currently some 42,000 African migrants in Israel, half of them children, women or men with families, who are not facing the April deportation deadline.
Israeli officials stress that no one they classify as a refugee or asylum seeker will be deported.
Hundreds of African migrants protest Israel detentions
Hundreds of African migrants protest Israel detentions
Syrian and Russian air forces strike Aleppo’s eastern countryside, government says
CAIRO: Syrian and Russian air forces were striking militant-held positions in Aleppo’s eastern countryside, killing and wounding dozens of insurgents, according to a statement from the Syrian Prime Minister’s office on Monday.
Lebanon army says Israeli drone hits post in east, wounding soldier
BEIRUT: Lebanon’s army said an Israeli drone strike wounded one of its soldiers in the eastern region of Hermel on Monday, the latest such raid since an Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire last week.
“An enemy drone struck an army bulldozer at a position, injuring one soldier,” the army said, five days after a ceasefire ended more than a year of war between Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah armed group.
Pro-Iranian militias enter Syria from Iraq to aid beleaguered Syrian army
AMMAN: Iranian-backed militias entered Syria overnight from Iraq and were heading to northern Syria to beef up beleaguered Syrian army forces battling insurgents, according to two Syrian army sources.
Dozens of Iran-aligned Iraqi Hashd al Shaabi fighters from Iraq also crossed into Syria through a military route near Al Bukamal crossing, a senior Syrian army source told Reuters.
“These are fresh reinforcements being sent to aid our comrades on the front lines in the north,” the officer said, adding the militias included Iraq’s Katiab Hezbollah and Fatemiyoun groups.
Iran sent thousands of Shiite militias to Syria during the Syrian war and, alongside Russia with its air power, enabled Syrian President Bashar Assad to crush the insurgency and regain most of his territory.
A lack of that manpower to help thwart the rebel onslaught in recent days contributed to the speedy retreat of Syrian army forces and withdrawal from Aleppo city, according to two other army sources. Militias allied to Iran, led by Hezbollah, have a strong presence in the Aleppo area.
Israel has also in recent months stepped up its strikes on Iranian bases in Syria while also waging an offensive in Lebanon which it says has weakened Hezbollah and its military capabilities.
GCC leaders call for halt to war crimes in Gaza, end of Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories
- The leaders stressed their firm support for the Palestinian cause and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital
- The ‘Kuwait Declaration,’ issued at the 45th session of the GCC Supreme Council, praised the growing role of Gulf countries in addressing regional, global challenges
RIYADH: Leaders of the Gulf Cooperation Council on Sunday called for an end to Israeli war crimes in Gaza, the displacement of the region’s population, and the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories.
The leaders stressed their firm support during a meeting in Kuwait for the Palestinian cause and its sovereignty over all Palestinian territories occupied since June 1967, and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital.
The “Kuwait Declaration,” which was issued at the 45th session of the Supreme Council of the GCC, praised the growing role of Gulf countries in addressing regional and global political, security, and economic challenges.
It also praised their contribution to resolving issues that threatened peace, security, and stability, and for enhancing international dialogue and communication between countries.
A statement said: “The Supreme Council called for an end to the killings and collective punishment in Gaza, the displacement of the population, and the destruction of civilian facilities and infrastructure, including health facilities, schools, and places of worship, in clear violation of international law and international humanitarian law.”
GCC leaders also welcomed the resolutions of the Extraordinary Arab and Islamic Summit hosted by Saudi Arabia in November to enhance international action to stop the war on Gaza; achieve permanent and comprehensive peace; implement the two-state solution in accordance with the Arab Peace Initiative; mobilize support for recognizing the State of Palestine; and lead the international coalition to implement the two-state solution.
They also praised Qatar’s efforts to achieve a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and exchange detainees.
The leaders condemned continued Israeli aggression on Lebanon and warned against the expansion of the conflict in the region. They also welcomed the recently brokered ceasefire in the country.
The leaders also welcomed continued efforts made by Saudi Arabia and Oman to revive the political process in Yemen.
The leaders stressed the peaceful approach of GCC countries and their preference for dialogue and diplomacy to resolve all disputes in the region and beyond, in accordance with the requirements of international law and the UN Charter.
US Navy destroys Houthi missiles and drones targeting American ships in Gulf of Aden
- The Houthis claimed the attack on merchant ships in a statement and said they had targeted the US destroyers
DUBAI: US Navy destroyers shot down seven missiles and drones fired by Yemen’s Houthi militants at the warships and three American merchant vessels they were escorting through the Gulf of Aden. No damage or injuries were reported.
US Central Command said late Sunday that the destroyers USS Stockdale and USS O’Kane shot down and destroyed three anti-ship ballistic missiles, three drones and one anti-ship cruise missile. The merchant ships were not identified.
The Houthis claimed the attack in a statement and said they had targeted the US destroyers and “three supply ships belonging to the American army in the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Aden.”
Houthi attacks for months have targeted shipping through a waterway where $1 trillion in goods pass annually over the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza and Israel’s ground offensive in Lebanon. A ceasefire was announced in the latter last week.
The USS Stockdale was involved in a similar attack on Nov. 12.
