Eritrea: New Pressure On Asylum Seekers to Leave - for Eritreans, Sudanese, More Threats of Prolonged Detention

press release

Israeli authorities are using new procedures to pressure at least 1,400 Eritrean and Sudanese asylum seekers, some detained for over a year, to return to their countries, Human Rights Watch said. Under international law, asylum seekers should be detained only in exceptional circumstances, their claims should be fairly examined and they should never be forced or pressured to return to a country where they face a serious risk of persecution.

Recent guidelines instruct Israeli officials on how to interview detainees while filming them about whether they wish to give up their asylum claims and return to their home countries. Detainees are told that if they do not agree to be sent home, they face years in detention. On July 14, 2013, 14 Eritreans detained for many months left Israel for Eritrea via Istanbul. Some of the group told the UN refugee agency they would "do anything to get out of prison."

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