The High Court of Justice said Monday it will hear a petition against Israel’s policy regarding Ukrainian refugees in a week, rejecting the state’s request to throw the case out.
On Sunday night, Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked announced that those fleeing the Russian invasion with relatives in Israel will be exempt from a 25,000-person entry cap placed on Ukrainian refugees who are not eligible for Israeli citizenship.
The move came amid rising criticism of the government’s refugee policy, from both within and outside the government.
It was not immediately clear how many more refugees the new policy means Israel will now admit.
Shaked’s announcement came after Ukrainian Ambassador to Israel Yevgen Korniychuk announced in a letter published Saturday that Ukraine was backing a petition to the High Court filed by attorney Tomer Warsha against the interior minister’s earlier policy.
Shaked stated last week that Israel would grant entry to no more than 5,000 Ukrainian refugees — who are not eligible for immigration — from the start of the war, and allow them to remain temporarily in Israel, alongside the approximately 20,000 Ukrainian nationals already in the country when the war began.
Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked holds a press conference at Ben Gurion International Airport, announcing new criteria for refugee admissions, March 13, 2022. (Roy Alima/Flash90)
Earlier Sunday, reports indicated that the 5,000-person entry cap had already been surpassed.
According to statistics published by the Population and Border Authority on Sunday morning, 7,179 Ukrainian nationals have arrived in Israel since Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, and 221 were refused entry.
The statistics included those who are immigrating and who are eligible to do so under the Law of Return, which grants citizenship to anyone with one Jewish grandparent.
Attorney Tomer Warsha (Facebook screenshot)
Warsha, an attorney specializing in immigration, said Sunday evening that Shaked’s new policy was a positive change, but not enough.
According to reports, the state told the court that the cap would not be hit for a week under the new policy, meaning the issue won’t become relevant until then.
Gideon Sa’ar speaks in Jerusalem, on March 7, 2021. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
Speaking to Kan public radio, Justice Minister Gideon Sa’ar on Monday backed Shaked’s decision to allow in more Ukrainians. But he appeared to chafe at the description of those fleeing to Israel as “refugees,” which he said carries “certain legal ramifications.”
“Israel is sheltering those who need it, it’s the humane, correct thing to do,” he said, “and that’s what Israel has done the last two weeks.”
The Kan public broadcaster reported Sunday that officials in the Justice Ministry pointed to possible legal difficulties in maintaining the refugee cap due to a visa waiver agreement with Ukraine.
Immigration and Absorption Minister Pnina Tamano-Shata at the Knesset, in Jerusalem, November 15, 2021 (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
Immigration Minister Pnina Tamano-Shata told Army Radio on Monday that Shaked’s new policy was “right and good.”
“I don’t know refugees who would come here if they didn’t have relatives,” she said. “We will have to constantly think outside the box.”
"hear" - Google News
March 14, 2022 at 05:18PM
https://ift.tt/iRHA39y
Rejecting state’s request, High Court to hear petition against Israeli refugee cap - The Times of Israel
"hear" - Google News
https://ift.tt/yPUT2Xo
https://ift.tt/N3W8fnw
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Rejecting state’s request, High Court to hear petition against Israeli refugee cap - The Times of Israel"
Post a Comment