As far as the issue of Eritreans is concerned, a distinction must be made between the serious and serious incident that took place earlier today (Saturday) and the problem of Eritreans in general in the territory of the State of Israel. The incident that happened today is a very serious and difficult event, but it has nothing to do with the State of Israel as a state, and it occurred because of their internal political interest between opponents and supporters of the Eritrean regime.
Violent riots by foreign nationals from Eritrea // Photo: Israel Police Spokesperson's Office
It should be noted that contrary to what was advertised, the police did prepare for this event. There were two protests, supporters and opponents. Both sides asked for permission from the police to protest and accepted it with all the same conditions as any other protest.
There are protests where there is preliminary intelligence for disturbances, and the police do not cancel the incident but rather incite or redirect it to another place and re-prepare accordingly. The role of the police is to allow any event and any protest, as long as the prerequisites set by the police for the organizers are met, and in this case as well, there were prerequisites.
The event itself is not yet finalized. I recommend waiting for a police investigation to examine the preliminary intelligence as well as the shooting.
Fierce clashes in Tel Aviv, photo: AP
Steal to survive
I commanded the Tel Aviv district during the first wave of Eritreans who arrived by bus from the south. The IDF caught them after they crossed the border. They did the tests, and like the reservists, they were given vouchers for buses from Be'er Sheva to Tel Aviv, to Levinsky Park. Even then, they understood that they had to go to Tel Aviv, because that was the only place where they would survive.
Even then, it was not easy for them. On the one hand, they were forbidden to employ them, and on the other hand, the state did not give them budgets and they were left with nothing. Slowly, their private businesses began to flourish, their own hammaras, hairdressers, grocery stores and more. The local authority also stepped in and did everything to make their lives easier, whether it was infrastructure and education.
Crime at that time increased and we understood even then that when you place people in Tel Aviv, desperate, without a livelihood, crime is their only alternative, to steal and rob.
Eritrean protest in Tel Aviv, photo: Coco
Even in my time, they would have protested, but not on this scale. We knew about the supporters and opponents, but it didn't reach that many wounded because we would have stopped it ahead of time. Nor have they ever come to "war" with sticks, irons, rocks and rocks like they do today. It looked like they wanted to conquer something. This was no ordinary protest. I hope that the police will use the cameras and arrest all the rioters and bring to justice all those who used violence.
The State of Israel will not be able to resolve the tension between these two factions. As for all those asylum seekers, who to this day have no status and therefore the state needs to see how to solve the problem, one way or the other, we must either give them status and disperse them throughout the country, so that they are not concentrated in one place, or find solutions for them with the help of international bodies.
Yesterday's incident is a red flag for the State of Israel, which needs to find a quick solution to the issue before it explodes in its face. You have to understand that it's not that the problem will be solved in the foreseeable future. Now they came with irons and sticks, but we don't know what tomorrow will be, we don't know if they won't come with guns.
Wrong? We'll fix it! If you find a mistake in the article, please share with us