Israel has decided to end its plans to deport African migrants, months after making such a threat and progressing with arrangements for their exit.
The Middle East country has said it has now reached a deal with the United Nations refugee agency for the resettlement of these migrants seeking asylum.
In February this year a notice was issued to African migrants in the country urging them to leave or face jail term in a major crackdown on illegal migrants.
The Israeli government issued the notice which was to affect thousands of African migrants who were to be compensated to enable them travel back to their countries.
In January this year Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the intended deportation plan would affect about 38,000 migrants who entered the country illegally.
Each migrant was to be given up to $3,500 to leave to their home countries. All migrants who refused were be jailed from April.
The office of the Prime Minister of Israel has now said that more than 16,000 asylum seekers will instead be resettled in unspecified Western countries.
Some 18,000 people are however expected to be given permanent residency in Israel after Israel’s Supreme Court blocked deportations meant to begin this month.
In a statement the office of the prime minister said “These understandings will allow the removal of more migrants from Israel than in the previous plan, and under UN and the international community’s auspices”.
Many of the immigrants from Eastern Africa mostly Eritrea and Sudan have said they fled their countries into the Middle East country seeking refuge.
Source: Africafeeds.com
