Serving for Permanent Status: Israel Recruits African Asylum Seekers to Fight in Gaza

Doha – In a controversial move, Israel’s “defense” establishment is offering African asylum seekers the promise of permanent residency status in exchange for participating in potentially life-threatening military operations as part of their genocide in Gaza, according to an exclusive report by Haaretz.

The Israeli newspaper revealed that around 30,000 African asylum seekers currently reside in Israel, with most being young men. Approximately 3,500 are Sudanese citizens who have been granted temporary status by the court due to delays in processing their applications.

Sources within the “defense” establishment, speaking anonymously, confirmed that the recruitment project is being conducted in an organized manner with guidance from legal advisers. However, the ethical implications of recruiting asylum seekers for military operations have reportedly not been addressed.

One asylum seeker, identified only as “A.”, described being contacted by someone claiming to be a police officer and instructed to report to a security facility. During subsequent meetings, A. was offered the possibility of receiving “documents from the State of Israel” in exchange for joining the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) and participating in the genocidal operations in Gaza.

The report indicates that some asylum seekers have already been utilized in various operations, though the specific nature of their deployment is barred from publication. Notably, no asylum seekers who have contributed to the IOF’s efforts have yet been granted official status.

IOF recruitment of foreign fighters

This recruitment of African asylum seekers is part of a larger pattern of foreign fighters serving in the IOF. According to a 2016 report from Israel’s “defense” ministry, French citizens make up about 45% of foreign volunteers in the IOF, followed by Americans at 29% and British at 5%.

A study published in the journal of Sociological Forum in June 2022 found that at least 1,200 Americans are serving in the IOF at any given time, with an estimated 3,500 foreign Jewish soldiers serving over the last two decades.

The involvement of foreign fighters in the IOF has intensified during the current genocide in Gaza. According to recent reports, at least 10,000 people living in the US have received draft notices from the Israeli army to report for duty since October 7.

Italy’s Foreign Minister, Antonio Tajani, reported that among the 18,000 Italian nationals in Israel when the genocide started, about 1,000 work for the IOF.

Human rights organizations in Israel have strongly condemned the practice. Shira Abu from the Hotline for Refugees and Migrants called it a “dangerous precedent,” while Assaf, an aid organization for refugees and asylum seekers, described it as a “new low” in Israel’s treatment of this vulnerable group.

The Association for Civil Rights in Israel criticized the move, stating, “The state, under the auspices of the same politicians who paved their path into a government [that boasts about] the purity of Jewish superiority, have realized that it is maybe possible to exploit these refugees to fight in Gaza.”

This development comes as Israel faces criticism for its ongoing genocidal operations in Gaza, which have resulted in significant civilian casualties and widespread destruction. To date, the death toll in Gaza has reached 41,272, with many other Palestinians missing presumed dead under the rubble.

The recruitment of asylum seekers for these operations raises serious questions about international law and the exploitation of vulnerable populations in conflict zones.

While Western countries have taken harsh measures against citizens who fought in Syria or joined groups like Daesh (ISIS), they have largely remained silent on their citizens fighting for Israel.

This apparent double standard has not gone unnoticed, with critics pointing out the inconsistency in how foreign fighters are treated depending on which side of a conflict they join.