KETZIOT PRISON BECOMES HOME TO AFRICAN

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 TEL AVIV 003525 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREF PREL PGOV KPAL IS EG SU SUBJECT: KETZIOT PRISON BECOMES HOME TO AFRICAN ASYLUM-SEEKERS ¶1. Summary. Ketziot Prison, in the Negev desert near the Israel-Egypt border, is now home to roughly 1,080 African asylum-seekers. Warden Brigadier General Shlomo Cohen told RefCoord and EmbOffs during a December 5 visit that as many as 250 asylum-seekers enter Israel each week, but that Ketziot is now filled to capacity. New arrivals come with few possessions and are often in need of medical attention, he said. The Prison Authority provides them with temporary shelter, food, medical care, and recreational opportunities. UNHCR reported December 12 that it receives 30 - 40 new African asylum-seekers every day at their offices, but lacks the capacity to conduct refugee status determinations for the majority of the current caseload. End Summary. No Vacancies at Ketziot -------------- ¶2. On December 5, RefCoord and EmbOffs visited Ketziot Prison, located just 5 kilometers from the Israel-Egypt border crossing at Nitzana, to observe the living conditions of 1,080 African asylum-seekers. According to General Cohen, the prison is also home to Israel's largest concentration of Palestinian security prisoners and is constantly under threat of attack by terrorists seeking to free inmates. Cohen reported that Ketziot began accepting African asylum-seekers in May/June, at which time a separate bloc inside the prison compound was constructed. With the bloc now filled to capacity and more asylum-seekers arriving in Israel at a rate of 250 per week, Cohen said he has given orders not to accept more. However, he later admitted that he may soon build another section inside the prison compound in order to accommodate new arrivals. Cohen noted that UNHCR typically visits the prison once per week to register new arrivals. He indicated that, in the past three months, the prison has released 400 Africans after UNHCR identified them as Darfurians. Africans Arrive In Poor Condition -------------- ¶3. According to Cohen, the African asylum-seekers pay between USD 500 - 700 to be smuggled into Israel from Egypt. When an IDF border patrol encounters the Africans, he said, they are taken to the nearest IDF facility. An IDF general officer must sign a warrant to assign them to Ketziot. Most of the asylum-seekers arrive only with "the clothes on their back," he added. The Interior Ministry has provided the Prison Authority with a "blank check" to provide clothing, food, toys, and medical care to this population. Many arrive with illnesses and are taken to nearby hospitals for treatment. The warden noted that, while at least four guards must accompany security prisoners for hospital visits, the African asylum-seekers go only with a driver and, if hospitalized overnight, stay by themselves. Facilities Are Adequate -------------- ¶4. While touring the facility, RefCoord observed that the African asylum-seekers are kept in a separate section apart from the security prisoners that is enclosed by a fence. Inside the fence are six sections, each enclosed by a concrete wall. Four sections house male Africans and two sections house women and children. Each male section contains 12 large tents, with 20 cots to a tent, allowing for up to 240 men per section. Bathrooms, showers, and a dining/recreational tent with a TV, ping pong table, and a game of dominoes were in evidence during the walk-through. Two sections designated for women and children are much less crowded, with only 94 women and 55 children (including 18 infants) and each contains a small playground, a dining tent, bathrooms and showers. ¶5. Cohen noted that the African residents are allowed two family visits per month (vice only one for the security prisoners). Typical family visits are between husbands and wives living in different sections. Cohen indicated that he does not face disciplinary problems with this population, and contrasted the "hugs and smiles" he receives from the Africans with his normal experience as a warden. RefCoord witnessed six African men working on building maintenance. Cohen said that the prison pays the Africans a small incentive for their work. The prison provides both adults and children with Hebrew language instruction. Children are not yet provided with a formal education, although Cohen TEL AVIV 00003525 002 OF 002 stated his intention to begin transporting roughly 30 school-age children to nearby schools. ¶6. In brief interactions, one Sudanese man recounted that he had left Egypt, where he had lived for 5 years, due to insecurity and poor living conditions. Showing his blue UNHCR refugee ID card, he complained that Sudanese in Egypt face constant discrimination and harassment by Egyptian security forces and that UNHCR had provided them with little to no assistance. In the women's section, one Eritrean asylum-seeker described how she had fled her home after her husband deserted the army. She spent only a few months in Egypt on the way to Israel and is now separated from her husband and child. The asylum-seekers said they felt safe and well cared-for inside Ketziot, but wished to find a permanent home and be allowed to work. UNHCR Requests USG Assistance -------------- ¶7. UNHCR Honorary Representative Micky Bavli told RefCoord December 12 that UNHCR's offices in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem continue to receive 30 - 40 new African asylum-seekers every day. Frustrated by the ease with which people can cross illegally from Egypt into Israel, he said that the new arrivals now crossing the Sinai originate from Libya, Lebanon, and other countries in the region. While some are detained at Ketziot, the IDF releases the majority on the streets in Be'er Sheva, from where they make their own way to Jerusalem or Tel Aviv. Bavli reported that, of 350 refugee status determinations (RSDs) UNHCR conducted recently on 200 Nigerians and 150 Turks, not one was determined to be a bonafide refugee. He admitted that UNHCR lacked experienced RSD staff to interview African asylum-seekers and requested USG assistance in this regard. Comment -------------- ¶8. With no end in sight to the growing numbers of African asylum-seekers in Israel, the GOI is facing some difficult decisions on what to do with those living in Ketziot prison. While the facility provides protection and accommodation, it is clearly not intended to be permanent. Israel's fear that local integration or third-country resettlement will only draw many thousands more to Israel is well-founded, but should not get in the way of finding durable solutions for those with bonafide refugee claims. End Comment. ********************************************* ******************** Visit Embassy Tel Aviv's Classified Website: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/telaviv You can also access this site through the State Department's Classified SIPRNET website. ********************************************* ******************** JONES