In a ruling of the Immigration Appeals Tribunal that was published yesterday (August 14, 2018), the judge called on the state to deport Eritrean asylum seekers back to their country. Human rights organizations responded as following to the verdict:
This is an exceptional judgment, in which the judge chose to spread his political doctrine and launch an unprecedented attack against the rulings of the Supreme Court and the government. The judge's decisions and recommendations are based on false reports and unverified hypotheses: the Eritrean regime has not yet confirmed the shortening of national service, forced and forcible recruitment is still taking place in Eritrea, and as the Swiss Embassy in Israel has made clear, contrary to reports, Switzerland does not expel Eritreans to their homeland. As the representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Justice and the National Security Council made clear in the Knesset, Israel does not have the option of deporting Eritreans to their homeland for fear of their safety and their lives.
We call for the state of Israel to provide genuine protection and status to all asylum seekers who are not subject to deportation and to thereby grant them the basic social and economic rights that every person deserves. We believe that the attempt to transfer people to other third countries is inappropriate and immoral. As stated in the judgment, the time has come for a clear and decisive decision on the issue of asylum seekers.
The organizations: The Hotline for Refugees and Migrants, The Association for Civil Rights in Israel, Kav La'Oved, Physicians for Human Rights, ASSAF - The Organization for Aid to Refugees and Asylum Seekers in Israel, and the African Refugee Development Center (ARDC)