How Israel is exploiting African asylum seekers to fight in Gaza

As Israel’s war on Gaza reaches a year and fears of a wider regional war grow as Israel bombards Lebanon, reports have emerged that Israel is luring asylum seekers to join the war effort with the promise of permanent residency.

With chants of “ceasefire” blaring through Israel’s streets, reservists refusing to serve, and ultra-Orthodox Jews protesting conscription, Israel’s defence establishment is now reportedly turning to African asylum seekers to fight in Gaza - offering permanent residency in exchange for participating in deadly military operations, according to Israeli newspaper Haaretz.

The news sent shockwaves throughout Israeli society, with refugee rights groups and members of parliament condemning the initiative and demanding to know more.

The Israeli NGOs - Hotline for Refugees and Migrants, ASSAF, and the African Refugees Development Centre - wrote to Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant and Interior Minister Moshe Arbel, calling the issue a “worrying moral low point”.

“Most of them have survived serious trauma in their countries of origin and live in poverty in a country that refuses to settle their status,” the NGOs wrote in their letter.

Israeli lawmakers Naama Lazimi and Ofer Cassif inquired about the number of asylum seekers who have been drafted and if they then received permanent status as promised.

“Rights should come before obligations,” Shira Abbo, public policy director at the Hotline for Refugees and Migrants, told The New Arab. “People who are living in Israel legally for over a decade, they should have been permanent residents already.”

While describing the enlistment as “crossing a dangerous line,” Abbo noted that no one in this community has approached her organisation regarding this issue, suggesting the number of asylum seekers targeted for recruitment is low.

“My guess about this whole situation is that people from inside wanted to stop it, and that's why the story broke out,” Abbo said. 

Denying rights

Approximately 30,000 African asylum seekers are estimated to be in Israel, having arrived between 2005-2012. Despite fleeing persecution from Eritrea and Sudan, only a few have been granted asylum.

Instead, Israel has given temporary protection to the majority of African asylum seekers through a “conditional release permit,” which gives them the right to not be deported but doesn’t provide access to medical or welfare services.

The only way for them to receive health benefits is by being employed. Yet Israel has also created obstacles to this as well. For instance, a 2022 government regulation prohibits asylum seekers from working in sectors other than construction, agriculture, caregiving, hospitality, and restaurants. The government also bans them from owning businesses.

“People who don't work, they’re not insured,” Abbo said. “They don't have any social rights in Israel. Minors have the right to learn in the Israeli school system, but that's pretty much it. In many ways, they are on the outskirts of Israeli society, although they’ve resided here legally for so long.”

This stands in stark contrast to the wealth of benefits Jewish migrants entering the country receive. Through Israel’s Law of Return, any individual with Jewish heritage can obtain citizenship. They also receive assistance with employment, establishing businesses, housing, and can apply for discounts on rent, taxes, and even purchasing cars.

Maha Hussaini, with the Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor, explained that the Israeli government views non-Jewish asylum seekers as a demographic threat to the state’s agenda of maintaining a Jewish majority.

“The state's foundational purpose as a homeland for Jews has driven the exclusionary treatment of non-Jewish migrants, including African asylum seekers,” Hussaini told TNA.

With Israel embodying the logo of a ‘Jewish state’, the government has implemented several measures preventing asylum seekers from making Israel their home.

This includes constructing a barrier along the border with Egypt, completed in 2012, and reaching agreements with countries rumoured to be Rwanda and Uganda to forcibly deport asylum seekers (despite the current situation in these countries being unable to handle an influx of refugees).

“All policies have shared a common goal,” Hussaini said. “Minimising the number of African asylum seekers in Israel.”

While blasting the military’s recruitment of asylum seekers, refugee rights groups also emphasise that many have long expressed their desire to join the Israeli army, especially the younger generation who grew up in Israel. As temporary residents, they are not allowed to serve. 

“They are very much Israeli,” Abbo said. “They have a lot more connections to Israel than to their parent's home country, but they don't have legal status in Israel, so they are not here and not there.”

While African asylum seekers have faced racism and discrimination living in Israel, this latest development marks a disturbing shift in their treatment, experts say.

“This new approach introduces a troubling escalation and exploitation of their insecure legal status, exchanging their labour for the mere prospect of residency - an offer that is often left unfulfilled,” Hussaini said.

Yet Hussaini explained this policy fits right in with the Israeli government's perception of African asylum seekers as disrupting the state’s Jewish hegemony, and thereby acts as a solution.

“If these individuals were to die in combat, Israel would not only reduce the number of Africans within its borders but also spare Israeli soldiers from the risks of war,” Hussaini said. “Israeli decision-makers seem to view it as a win-win situation.”

Jessica Buxbaum is a Jerusalem-based journalist covering Palestine and Israel. Her work has been featured in Middle East Eye, The National, and Gulf News.

Follow her on Twitter: @jess_buxbaum