Darfur groups respond to Israel's decision on Sudan
By Kristin Erekson
The Jewish Advocate
Many international and local Jewish groups are standing behind Israel's decision to deny asylum to some Sudanese refugees seeking a safe haven in the Jewish state.
Last week, several media outlets reported that Israel "closed its door" to refugees from Sudan, not allowing them to stay in Israel after sneaking across the border from Egypt. The government's decision drew harsh criticism from those who believe it is the Jewish state's obligation to provide a home for individuals fleeing genocide.
But Nadav Tamir, consul general of Israel to New England, said Israel has kept its "moral commitment to the victims of the Darfur crisis," having recently granted refuge to a group of 500 asylum-seekers who were already in the country.
Tamir added that the government remains cautious about allowing all Sudanese to stay because Israel does not share a border with Sudan, which is considered a "hostile country" and is home to members of al-Qaeda.
Many Sudanese seeking asylum in Israel are sent back to Egypt and assured they will not be returned to their war-torn region.
"The bottom line is that many did get asylum in Israel. The 500 refugees is equivalent to 18,000 in America if you compare the numbers," said Tamir.
Over several years, roughly 1,500 Sudanese refugees entered Israel through the Egyptian border, according to statistics provided by the Committee for Advancement of Refugees from Darfur (C.A.R.D.).
Eytan Schwartz, spokesman for C.A.R.D., said he believes that Israel has "the right and the obligation" to set a quota on the number of people absorbed into the country. However, Schwartz added that he does not approve of Sudanese refugees being deported back to Egypt, stating that they are often victims of racist behavior.
"Israel is definitely receiving unfair criticism," Schwartz said in a telephone interview with the Advocate from Tel Aviv. "When the media reports that Israel is deporting Darfur refugees, it is misleading. Israel is deporting those who entered the country illegally ... I would challenge Europeans nations ... and see how they would handle it."
The Jewish state, Tamir said, has also taken the lead in introducing several relief programs for Darfur refugees in Africa, such as providing medical assistance at the Kakuma Refugee Camp in Kenya and making donations to an educational program for children from Darfur in refugee camps in Chad.
Charles Jacobs, co-founder of the American Anti-Slavery Group and president of The David Project Center for Jewish Leadership, said while Israel has the right to worry about who it lets into its borders, it should have a "moral obligation" to make alliances with people under siege.
"This is particularly painful for me that Israel is turning away people," Jacobs added. "The whole world is looking for moderate Muslims and here you have them under genocidal attack by Islamic jihadis."
Yet Nancy Kaufman, executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Boston, which is supporting a bill calling for the divestment from Sudan, said a global effort is necessary to help Sudanese refugees.
"Israel is not morally obligated to offer sanctuary to everyone in the world," Kaufman added. "It already offers sanctuary to all of the Jews in the world and that's huge."
