Hotlines’ Annual Report on Detention Reveals: Israel Attempted a Pushback and Detained a Sudanese Family with Three Children
Hotline for Refugees and Migrants is publishing it’s ninth annual report on the detention of migrants and asylum seekers. The report, on the events of 2023, reveals for the first time Israel’s attempted pushback of a group of Sudanese asylum seekers who entered Israel through Jordan. Among this group was a family of five, with three minor children, the youngest of whom was a 6-mont-old baby.
Two days after the family was detained, a hearing was held at the Detention Review Tribunal. The tribunal adjudicator, Yoav Bar-Lev, failed to note the children’s ages in the hearing records, did not consider their welfare and concluded that “Humanitarian ground for release do not apply to the case”.
Hotline for Refugees and Migrants represented the family and succeeded in securing the release of the children with their mother after one month in detention. Two months later, the Hotline succeeded in securing also the father’s release. He had been detained for three months and the mother and children for a month – despite being Sudanese citizens entitled to protection in Israel, despite no prospect of their deportation, and despite both parents having submitted asylum requests still pending to this day have with the Immigration Authority, and even though they had with them with three children under 5 years old.
The report further uncovers that the Immigration Authority deported a detainee living with a mental illness, despite Adjudicator Itiel Givon of the Detention Review Tribunal determining that “his mental state requires further evaluation”.
In December 2022, KT, an Eritrean citizen, was detained while “infiltrating” back into Israel after he was observed crossing the border to Jordan. He was brought before the Jerusalem Magistrate Court, which extended his arrest. Subsequently, it was decided not to charge him and he was transferred to administrative detention. During a hearing before a Border Control Officer, KT expressed his wish to return to Eritrea. Instead of releasing him and allowing the Voluntary Return Unit to assist him outside of detention – the Appeals Court Adjudicator Rachel Sharm ruled that he remain in immigration-administrative detention, despite having no convictions or posing any danger.
KT was detained for another month. In the following hearing before the Detention Review Tribunal, Adjudicator Itiel Givon noted, “The detainee talks to himself, argues with himself and speaks out of context, raising concerns that his mental state requires further evaluation”.
KT refused to attended a hearing a month later. The next day, the Hotline for Refugees and Migrants contacted the head of the courts appointed by virtue of the Entry into Israel Law and the head of the Enforcement and Foreigners Administration at the Immigration Authority, requesting to appoint a legal aid lawyer for KT, as the Legal Aid Department is authorized to represent detainees unable to represent themselves. Several days later, the Hotline was informed that KT had been deported to Eritrea. After two months in administrative detention, without amu legal proceedings against him, despite being in Israel legally under temporary protection and showing clear evidence of mental health struggles – KT was sent from his detention cell back to Eritrea.
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