Refugees in Tel Aviv
February 15, 2014 (Tel Aviv) - This weekend was overshadowed by a wave of anti-immigrant “hysteria”, attacks and racist incidents in Israel. Three Israelis have been detained by police in connection to stabbings of African migrants in Tel Aviv.
According to the police the motive was robbery and the nationality of the victims could not yet be disclosed. However, investigations have to reveal whether or not there was a racial component to the stabbings. Initial reports stated that one victim was stabbed in his back along Rosh Pina Street, another was stabbed in his stomach on Levinski Street and the last also sustained a stomach wound on Solomon Street.
This is not the first time the African community in Israel has been targeted by possible hate crimes, though the police now believe that the stabbing was criminally motivated and was part of an attempted robbing involving the three victims and the three Israelis arrested, Ynetnews said.
In a separate incident on Saturday African asylum seekers from Eritrea were refused to mourn their death compatriots by gathering in a small park on De Modina Street in the Shapira neighborhood of south Tel Aviv, according to Israeli web magazine +972.
Eritreans gather every Saturday in the park to hold memorial ceremonies for the loved ones who have died in Eritrea or in Sinai while on their way to Israel.
Right-wing activists invited to a picnic on Facebook, calling on local residents to “reclaim” the park as they feel disturbed by people crying during weekends and afraid to let their children play in the park.
The right-wing protesters hung colorful balloons and made noise with whistles and chants to disturb the mourners.
Slowly, the Eritreans started to leave the park, some seemed to be scared by the protest, and some wanted to continue mourning in a place where people would not disturb them, said +972.
