120 South Sudanese migrants to depart from Israel to Juba tonight

An airplane carrying 120 infiltrators from South Sudan was scheduled to take off from Ben-Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv Sunday night, heading for the South Sudanese capital of Juba. All those who will board the flight signed documents to leave Israel voluntarily, and will be escorted by representatives from the South Sudanese Immigration Authority.

During their stay in Israel, the immigration authority officials met with Interior Minister Eli Yishai to discuss the influx of illegal African immigration into Israel as well as the South Sudanese community in the Jewish state.

The flight was originally planned to carry 150 passengers, but the number was trimmed to make room for the deportees' luggage. Due to the large number of South Sudanese migrants who signed up to leave Israel voluntarily, another flight was arranged to take the remainder of the migrants home, scheduled to take off from Tel Aviv next Sunday. In addition to the 120 South Sudanese migrants flying out on Sunday, there are an additional 200 migrants on the list of those who agreed to fly back and are awaiting a flight.

Meanwhile, the Police and the Population, Immigration and Border Authority (PIBA) extended the period for which infiltrators can choose to leave voluntarily, following the massive response from South Sudanese migrants. As part of PIBA's enforcement of the new immigration law, measures were taken against 600 illegal immigrants from South Sudan, of which more than half agreed to leave voluntarily and receive a stipend of 1,000 euros ($1,263), while the rest were arrested. The government hopes to enforce the new law against a total of some 1,500 South Sudanese migrants and another 1,800 migrants from the Ivory Coast living in Israel.

PIBA stated over the weekend that 258 people infiltrated Israel through its southern border last week.

At Sunday's weekly cabinet meeting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the increased efforts to stop the flow of African migrants stems from a desire to assert control over Isreal's borders and is consistent with Jewish values. "Tonight, the first plane of illegal infiltrators will leave for South Sudan. An additional plane will leave next week. Today, the Government will begin the operation to repatriate illegal work infiltrators to their countries of origin. We will do this is an orderly and dignified manner," Netanyahu said.

The prime minister recounted, "When I was a young boy, I would go every Shabbat to the home of Prof. Joseph Klausner. At the house before it was a special palm tree. There was an arch, and on the arch two words were inscribed: Judaism and humanity. We have a Jewish tradition of treating strangers humanely, and even when we need to deport them from our midst due to the state's desire to control its borders, we must do so humanely and in a manner that finds expression in a restrained and humane manner."

This was the second time in less than a month that Netanyahu urged the ministers and the public to tone down the rhetoric against African migrants.

Netanayhu also recounted the recent steps taken on this issue and what has been guiding his policy. "We are dealing with the problem of infiltrators by blocking their entry via the construction of a fence, hastening their repatriation or – in certain cases – sending them to third countries, and revoking the incentive for migration. This includes a series of steps."

"In the coming months we will complete the construction of the fence in the south, a main step that the Cabinet has decided upon, and it will be completed very soon," Netanyahu explained. "Also, we have halted the unacceptable practice in which infiltrators are taken from the border to Tel Aviv or any other part of the country. As of last week, any infiltrator that crosses the border will be placed in detention immediately, and this is in keeping with the new law that we passed, which allows infiltrators to be detained for years. We are also building holding facilities to house tens of thousands of infiltrators until they can be sent out of the country."

On Saturday, the Gan Levinsky Library in south Tel Aviv held an event for residents of the city's southern neighborhoods and the migrant communities there. "We feel as though this isn't really a time to celebrate, but to use this platform to extend a hand to our friends from the South Sudanese community. Our friends are going through a difficult time and sometimes an inhumane experience," one of the events organizers said.

Dr. Rami Godovich, from the Levinksy Library, told Israel Hayom Saturday night that "it was important that the children came up to speak as well. They spoke about the deportation and the difficulty of leaving Israel. "People are willing to leave the country if they are not wanted here, but they are very fearful of danger to their lives and the lack of food they may face when they return to their home countries."

Meanwhile, the Tel Aviv Magistrate's Court released two Eritreans who were suspected to have stolen wallets at the Hilton Beach in Tel Aviv. Judge Menachem Klein wrote in his verdict that after looking over all the evidence, he suspected that the general hostility towards foreigners among the public affected the witnesses' testimonies. Israel Police Advanced Staff Sergeant Maj. Yoni Hirshoren stated that one of the two suspects had been previously arrested for a similar charge, while the other was not known to police.

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