Recently, the Israeli government informed more than 35,000 African migrants that they have three months to either leave Israel or go to jail. The country has offered to give the migrants $3,500 and free airfare if they leave. They have been told to either go back home or to Rwanda and Uganda.
The Israeli government claims the African migrants came illegally. They believe that the refugees “threaten the country’s Jewish character.” The majority of the Africans came from Sudan and Eritrea, seeking asylum and refuge. They left their countries because they were at risk of persecution and their countries were at war. If the refugees decide to leave and go to Rwanda or Uganda, there is a chance that they will not receive refugee status and might not be able to work. Rwanda and Uganda, however, deny the deal to take African migrants.
The refugees run the risk of facing troubles in Libya when they leave. There is a modern-day slave trade going on in Libya and refugees can be potentially arrested or killed in Libya.
Countless African migrants have started protesting in the streets and are pleading with the Israeli government. A number of them have lived in Israel for a long period of time and leaving means giving up their jobs and their lives as they know it. The ultimatum that the refugees have been given is heart-wrenching: stay and be thrown in jail for an unknown amount of time or leave and go to a country where you will not be able to work and provide for your family.
