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Reports by the Israeli media on monday revealed that the government has been publicly recruiting African asylum-seekers for the war in Gaza in return for being given permanent residency in Israel.
Military sources, who opened up to Israel’s “Haaretz” news outlet, have also confirmed that the recruitment was being organised and moderated “with legal guidance from defense establishment advisers” but the manner in which the recruits will be used has not been made public.
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In Israel as of 2020, around 30,000 individuals seeking asylum, predominantly from Sudan and Eritrea, were present. However, the approval rate for asylum claims is less than 1%, as stated by Shira Abbo, the director of public policy at Hotline for Refugees and Migrants, a prominent refugee advocacy organization in Israel.
The UN’s 1951 Refugee Convention states that a refugee is someone who a host state or international body recognises as not being able to return to a home country due to a “well-founded fear of being persecuted”. In contrast, an asylum seeker is someone still awaiting that recognition.
“For many, their requests are not denied but pending for five, 10 years or more, leaving them in legal limbo,” Abbo said.
The war that erupted between Israel and Hamas after the attacks of October 7, in which three asylum seekers were among more than 1,100 killed, set off a wave of volunteerism among those living and working in Israel. Many asylum seekers, desperate to solidify their legal status, offered to enlist in civilian command centres and agricultural work. It was then, according to Haaretz, that military officials saw an opportunity to leverage this desire.
One asylum seeker, identified only as “A” by Haaretz, shared his experience. Having arrived in Israel at the age of 16, he sought to integrate into society by joining the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). At the start of the war, someone claiming to be a police officer instructed him over the phone to report immediately to a security facility.
“They told me they were looking for special people to join the army. They told me this was a life-or-death war for Israel,” he told Haaretz.
After several meetings with officials, A was informed that, if he enlisted, he would undergo two weeks of training alongside other asylum seekers and receive documents from the state of Israel.
However, he ultimately decided that military life was not for him and withdrew from the programme before training commenced.
The Hotline for Refugees and Migrants has expressed concern over the lack of transparency, stating that while rumours of the benefits of military service have been circulating, the organisation has not been able to confirm any cases in which what has been promised has been delivered.
The recruitment practice has also been met with criticism for creating a quid pro quo when asylum should be decided on the basis of merit.
“Asylum status is granted due to persecution, not as part of a deal,” said Julia Grignon, professor of international humanitarian law and research director at the Institute for Strategic Research (IRSEM). “Enlisting in the military should never be a condition for obtaining refugee status.”
Some have argued that Israel is exploiting vulnerable people who fled their homelands in search of safety.
“The little information we have is alarming,” Abbo said. “Rights should come before obligations. It’s dangerous to recruit individuals without rights and expect them to risk their lives based on vague promises.”
The Israeli defense establishment maintains that its actions comply with the law.
