Israel

Detains migrants or asylum seekers?

Yes

Has laws regulating migration-related detention?

Yes

Detention Capacity

192

2021

Refugees

1,227

2023

Asylum Applications

25,453

2023

International Migrants

1,953,575

2020

Overview

Israel has experienced important increases in migration flows from Africa, which has spurred passage of a number of restrictive measures. These have included the creation of a specialised immigration force tasked with deporting irregular residents, proposals to build walls along its borders to stem "infiltrations" by "illegal workers," and construction of new detention facilities.

Types of facilities used for migration-related detention
Administrative Ad Hoc Criminal Unknown

Israel: Covid-19 and Detention

Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Israel has welcomed large numbers of Ukrainian and Russian Jews within the scope of its Law of Return. Its treatment of these groups, however, stands in stark contrast to that experienced by other refugees and asylum seekers–many of whom face detention and deportation. Most recently, the country’s Interior Ministry announced […]

Read More…

E. Moussa, “From Refugees to Settlers: How the Ukraine War is Helping Israel’s Demographic Project,” The New Arab, 28 March 2022, https://english.alaraby.co.uk/analysis/how-ukraine-war-helping-israels-demographic-project

Israel: Covid-19 and Detention

The first case of COVID-19 was confirmed in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) in early March 2020, after the discovery of seven cases in Bethlehem linked to a tourist group from Greece. In response, the Palestinian Authority declared a state of emergency, imposed a citywide lockdown, and enforced a curfew. Between March and June, there […]

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Magen David Adom Medical Workers at a Drive-Through Testing Site at the Entrance of an East Jerusalem neighbourhood on 2 April 2020, (Yonatan Sindel, Flash 90,

Israel: Covid-19 and Detention

Prior to the Covid-19 crisis, large numbers of Palestinians travelled to work in Israel on a daily or weekly basis. However, due to fears that such travel could further spread the virus, Israel’s emergency regulations required Palestinian workers to remain in the country and prevented them from returning to the West Bank. (Authorities issued stay […]

Read More…

Palestinian Labourers Line Up to Enter Israel through the Mitar Checkpoint in the Occupied West Bank City of Hebron, (H. Bader, AFP,

Israel: Covid-19 and Detention

After deconfinement began on 27 in Israel, new Covid infections increased sharply. However, the real number of infections in the country is difficult to assess because of fears amongst workers about the consequences of presenting themselves for testing. Migrant workers and asylum seekers appear to have a much higher infection rate than the rest of […]

Read More…

Migrant Workers in South Tel Aviv Queue to get Tested for Covid-19, (Negev Abbas,

Israel: Covid-19 and Detention

Israel has implemented several measures impacting migrants and asylum seekers as well as prisoners. While one NGO, Hotline for Refugees and Migrants, has reported that they were been able to get some people released from immigration detention since the crisis began, the GDP has found no additional reports detailing what, if any, measures are being […]

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Volunteers with the African Refugee Development Center prepare to deliver food packages to African asylum seekers in south Tel Aviv, April 3, 2020. (ARDC / Times of Israel https://www.timesofisrael.com/for-african-migrants-in-israel-covid-19-means-health-jobs-homes-all-at-risk/)
Last updated: February 2011

DETENTION STATISTICS

Migration Detainee Entries
Not Available
2019
Alternative Total Migration Detainee Entries
0
Average Daily Detainee Population (year)
0

DETAINEE DATA

Countries of Origin (Year)
Ukraine (Georgia) Russian Federation Thailand Moldova
2021
Total Number of Children Placed in Immigration Detention (Year)
0
2017

DETENTION CAPACITY

Total Immigration Detention Capacity
192
2021

ALTERNATIVES TO DETENTION

ADDITIONAL ENFORCEMENT DATA

PRISON DATA

Criminal Prison Population (Year)
20,245
2015
19,358
2013
Percentage of Foreign Prisoners (Year)
38.9
2014
Prison Population Rate (per 100,000 of National Population)
265
2015
249
2013

POPULATION DATA

Population (Year)
9,200,000
2023
8,700,000
2020
8,064,000
2015
7,700,000
2012
International Migrants (Year)
1,953,575
2020
1,956,346
2019
2,011,700
2015
2,046,900
2013
International Migrants as Percentage of Population (Year)
22.57
2020
24.9
2015
26.5
2013
Refugees (Year)
1,227
2023
1,191
2021
1,843
2020
16,107
2019
18,569
2018
25,473
2017
32,909
2016
32,946
2015
39,716
2014
48,325
2013
Ratio of Refugees Per 1000 Inhabitants (Year)
3.73
2016
5
2014
6.23
2013
6.54
2012
Asylum Applications (Year)
25,453
2023
9,444
2019
226
2014
2,593
2013
1,999
2012
Refugee Recognition Rate (Year)
100
2014
Stateless Persons (Year)
35
2023
42
2016
88
2015
10
2014
14
2013

SOCIO-ECONOMIC DATA & POLLS

Gross Domestic Product per Capita (in USD)
37,208
2014
47,400
2013
Remittances to the Country (in USD)
1,475
2011
Remittances From the Country (in USD)
3,739
2010
Unemployment Rate
2014
Human Development Index Ranking (UNDP)
18 (Very high)
2015
19 (Very high)
2014
Pew Global Attitudes Poll on Immigration
74
2013

LEGAL & REGULATORY FRAMEWORK

Does the Country Detain People for Migration, Asylum, or Citizenship Reasons?
Yes
2023
Yes
2018
Does the Country Have Specific Laws that Provide for Migration-Related Detention?
Yes
2023
Yes
1952
Detention-Related Legislation
Prevention of Infiltration (Offences and Jurisdiction) Law, 5714-1954, 8 LSI 133 (5714-1953/54). as amended (1954) 2014
1954
Law of Return 5710-1950 (1950) 1970
1950
Law No. 5712-1952, Entry into Israel Law (1952) 2017
1952
The Citizenship and Entry Into Israel Law (Temporary Provision) 5763-2003 (2003)
2003
The Law for the Prevention of Infiltration (1954) 2014
1954
Legal Tradition(s)
Civil law
2017
Common law
2017
Jewish law
2017
Muslim law
2017

GROUNDS FOR DETENTION

Criminal Penalties for Immigration-Related Violations
Yes (Yes)
1954
Grounds for Criminal Immigration-Related Incarceration / Maximum Length of Incarceration
Unauthorized re-entry (2555)
1954
Unauthorized entry (1825)
1954
Unauthorised stay (1825)
1954
Has the Country Decriminalised Immigration-Related Violations?
No
1954
Children & Other Vulnerable Groups
Accompanied minors (Provided) No
2016

LENGTH OF DETENTION

DETENTION INSTITUTIONS

Custodial Authorities
(Interior Ministry) Interior or Home Affairs
2011
(Ministry of Interior) Interior or Home Affairs
2009
Detention Facility Management
Israel Prison Service (Governmental)
2016
Ministry of Interior (Governmental)
2016
Israel Prison Service (Governmental)
2011
Immigration Administration (Governmental)
2011
Israeli immigration police (Governmental)
2010
Immigration Police (Governmental)
2009
Israel Prison Service (Governmental)
2008
Immigration Administration (Governmental)
2003
Types of Detention Facilities Used in Practice
2015

PROCEDURAL STANDARDS & SAFEGUARDS

COSTS & OUTSOURCING

COVID-19 DATA

TRANSPARENCY

MONITORING

NATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS MONITORING BODIES

NATIONAL PREVENTIVE MECHANISMS (OPTIONAL PROTOCOL TO UN CONVENTION AGAINST TORTURE)

NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANISATIONS (NGOs)

GOVERNMENTAL MONITORING BODIES

INTERNATIONAL DETENTION MONITORING

INTERNATIONAL TREATIES & TREATY BODIES

International Treaties Ratified
Ratification Year
Observation Date
CRPD, Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
2012
2012
CTOCTP, Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children
2008
2008
ICCPR, International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
1991
1991
ICESCR, International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
1991
1991
CEDAW, Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women
1991
1991
CAT, Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
1991
1991
CRC, Convention on the Rights of the Child
1991
1991
ICERD, International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination
1979
1979
PCRSR, Protocol to the Geneva Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees
1968
1968
CRSSP, Convention Relating to the Status of Stateless Persons
1958
1958
CRSR, Geneva Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees
1954
1954
Ratio of relevant international treaties ratified
Ratio: 11/19
Ratio of Complaints Procedures Accepted
Observation Date
0
2017
Relevant Recommendations or Observations Issued by Treaty Bodies
Recommendation Year
Observation Date
Human Rights Committee Treatment of refugees and asylum seekers 40. The Committee is concerned about the persisting low recognition rate of refugees in the State party and the reported lack of coherent and transparent rules and criteria for the refugee status determination procedure. It is further concerned at significant waiting times for the asylum procedure, lack of access to free legal aid throughout asylum proceedings and the automatic detention of asylum seekers and refugees who enter the country irregularly. It also notes with concern reports that, despite the State party’s assurance that the third countries were safe and there has been no known case of the violation of the prohibition of non-refoulement, some Sudanese and Eritrean refugees who were relocated from Israel to undisclosed third countries have been subjected to ill-treatment and human trafficking (arts. 2, 6, 7, 9, 13 and 26). 41. Recalling its previous recommendations,28 the Committee recommends that the State party: (d) Review its policy of relocating Sudanese and Eritrean refugees to undisclosed third countries, with a view to finding safe and durable solutions for them in line with the principle of non-refoulement. 2022
2022
2022
Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination § 41. The State party: (a) Ensure that the refugee status determination procedure is in full compliance with the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and that the process of application is fair and effective; (b) Amend the Law for the Prevention of Infiltration and any other relevant legislation in order to ensure that they do not stigmatize asylum seekers and are in line with the State party ’s international obligations ; (c) Consider abolishing the provisions that require employers to deduct a significant percentage of the salaries of employees falling under the Law for the Prevention of Infiltration, which further hampers their socioeconomic status and opportunities; (d) Ensure equal access to and quality education of children of asylum seekers, continue the establishment of educational institutions, including by increasing the number of public kindergartens, and put an end to the de facto segregated schooling system ; (e) Ensure adequate protection for all stateless persons and establish an effective mechanism to end statelessness among Bedouins. 2020
2020
2020
Committee against Torture 45. The State party should take the legislative and other measures necessary with a view to ensuring that the detention of persons entering its territory irregularly is only used as a last resort, when determined to be strictly necessary and proportionate in each individual case, and for as short a period as possible. 2016
2016
2016
Human Rights Committee

§20 […] (d) Ensure that the new legislation abolishes the system of automatic detention of asylum seekers and requires that in each case, detention is reasonable, necessary and proportionate in light of the circumstances, and reassessed as it extends in time

2014
2014
2014
Committee on the Rights of the Child

§70 […](d) Cease with immediate effect the detention of children on the basis of their immigration status; (e) Conduct individual assessments and evaluations of the best interests of the child at all decision stages of the migration process affecting children, and with the involvement of child protection professionals, the judiciary as well as children themselves. Primary consideration should also be given to the best interests of the child in any proceeding resulting in the child’s or their parents’ detention, return or deportation;

2013
2013
2013

> UN Special Procedures

> UN Universal Periodic Review

Relevant Recommendations or Observations from the UN Universal Periodic Review
Observation Date
No 2009
2017
Yes 2013
2017

> Global Compact for Migration (GCM)

GCM Resolution Endorsement
Observation Date
2018

> Global Compact on Refugees (GCR)

GCR Resolution Endorsement
Observation Date
2018

REGIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS MECHANISMS

HEALTH CARE PROVISION

HEALTH IMPACTS

COVID-19

Country Updates
Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Israel has welcomed large numbers of Ukrainian and Russian Jews within the scope of its Law of Return. Its treatment of these groups, however, stands in stark contrast to that experienced by other refugees and asylum seekers–many of whom face detention and deportation. Most recently, the country’s Interior Ministry announced its intention to permit deportations to Sudan. Approximately 13,000 Ukrainians with Jewish heritage are reported to have made aliyah (or emigrated) to Israel since 24 February. Soon after Russian forces began bombarding Ukraine, Israel’s Ministry of Aliyah and Integration removed bureaucratic hurdles to help expedite the aliyah process for potential Ukrainian olim (immigrants), and authorities set up aliyah processing centres at Ukrainian border crossings with Hungary, Poland, Moldova, and Romania. As part of an emergency plan dubbed “Arvut Israel” (“Israel Guarantees”), Israel vowed to provide temporary accommodation to Ukrainian olim in Israel and to absorb them into integration programmes. Speaking shortly after the arrival of the first group of Ukrainians in early March, the country’s Minister of Aliyah and Integration said: "They are welcomed in Israel with a big hug. The children who do not have a home or parents represent the great need of all those who escape to Israel to find warmth and safety. The State of Israel will assist those children and all of the other olim with all the assets available to the government of Israel.” Even larger numbers of Russians have also made aliyah since the invasion began. Following Putin’s partial mobilisation announcement on 21 September, the largest call-up in Russia since World War II, Israel has witnessed a surge in Russians entering the country. Unlike many governments, Jerusalem has not adopted official sanctions against Moscow and the country’s national airline has continued to operate direct flights to Moscow. While those eligible for aliyah have been welcomed, some Russians arriving on tourist visas have found themselves denied entry, and have been detained and deported. According to information received by Haaretz newspaper, between 24 February and 1 October 2022 more than 2,000 Russians have been blocked from entering the country. Several recent cases have attracted widespread attention and criticism–including that of the detention and deportation to Turkey of a Russian wheelchair-bound wife of an Israeli citizen along with her 13-year-old son, and the deportation to Russia of a mother with her seven-month-old baby. Following public backlash in the wake of these cases, Israel’s Interior Ministry instructed the Population and Immigration Authority to grant entry to couples even if only one person is an Israeli citizen - thus allowing people to enter the country before they complete the various bureaucratic procedures required for gaining residency. Israel’s Law of Return gives anyone who is Jewish (born or converted), the spouses of Jewish persons, and persons with Jewish parents or grandparents, the right to move to Israel and claim Israeli citizenship. However, those without such a background or family connections face a starkly different reality. Following a controversial 2012 amendment to the country’s Prevention of Infiltration Law, all refugees, asylum seekers, and migrants entering the country “irregularly”--such as those crossing from Egypt–are labelled as “infiltrators” and subsequently face detention. The country has no national asylum legislation, authorities routinely reject asylum claims, and successive government policies have sought to coerce non-nationals–in particular Africans–into leaving “voluntarily.” This has included the deduction of 20 percent from salaries and placing this in accounts that can only be accessed if they depart the country, and barring asylum seekers from certain professions in major cities. Most recently, on 18 October the Israeli Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked announced plans to tighten the country’s policy on Sudanese asylum seekers after a review concluded that they are not in enough danger in Sudan to justify seeking asylum. Currently, asylum seekers from Darfur and the Nuba Mountains are entitled to temporary residency in Israel. But the Interior Ministry’s conclusion that persons from these regions are not systematically persecuted on the basis of their ethnic origin, and that Khartoum is a suitable residential option for them, could pave the way to deportations. Previously in April Shaked also announced plans to remove protection of Congolese citizens. From December 8, Israel will be able to deport Congolese persons who do not have pending asylum applications.
The first case of COVID-19 was confirmed in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) in early March 2020, after the discovery of seven cases in Bethlehem linked to a tourist group from Greece. In response, the Palestinian Authority declared a state of emergency, imposed a citywide lockdown, and enforced a curfew. Between March and June, there were only 665 registered cases of COVID-19 in the West Bank and Gaza, 180 cases among Palestinians in Jerusalem, and limited cases among Palestinians in Israel. However, the onset of a second wave from July resulted in rapid growth of the number of cases. By the end of November 2020, the territories, including east Jerusalem, had reported nearly 85,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 714 deaths. The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) has put in measures to slow the spread of the virus, including giving medical consultations by phone, delivering humanitarian assistance to avoid overcrowding at distribution centres, and blending school with remote learning. However, these measures have been criticised for being insufficient to prevent the spread. On 10 November 2020, the spokesperson for UNRWA reported that the agency had run out of cash on hand to keep vital services going amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Numerous concerns, meanwhile, have been raised regarding healthcare provision in the OPT, particularly in Gaza, where medical infrastructure is chronically under-resourced and has, in the past, faced militarised attacks--as well as the effects of years of suffocating blockades. In April, it was reported that between the three hospitals located in East Jerusalem, there are only 22 ventilators and 62 beds prepared for coronavirus patients. Moreover, attempts by Palestinians to mobilise community health initiatives have been met with crackdowns on the part of the Israeli police. At the end of August 2020, 355 Palestinians--including two minors--continued to be held in administrative detention in Israel Prison Service (IPS) facilities, according to B’Tselem. Administrative detention is permitted under Article 285 of Military Order 1651, which is part of the military legislation applying in the West Bank; the Internment of Unlawful Combatants Law (Unlawful Combatants Law), which has been used against residents of the Gaza Strip since 2005; and the Emergency Powers (Detentions) Law, which applies to Israeli citizens. According to the Palestinian NGO Addameer, administrative detention is used almost exclusively to detain Palestinians from the occupied Palestinian territory (OPT), although Israeli citizens and foreign nationals can also be held as administrative detainees by Israel. In November, the Palestinian Detainees Committee reported that the Israeli Prison Authority (IPA) had sealed all sections in Gilboa’ prison in central Israel and cancelled all visits from detainees’ families, after more than 80 detainees in the prison tested positive for coronavirus. Conditions within the prison have previously been criticised for being overcrowded and dirty. In March, the Israeli government released approximately 400 offenders from prisons throughout Israel for a 30-day house arrest, after which they were officially released from prison.
Prior to the Covid-19 crisis, large numbers of Palestinians travelled to work in Israel on a daily or weekly basis. However, due to fears that such travel could further spread the virus, Israel’s emergency regulations required Palestinian workers to remain in the country and prevented them from returning to the West Bank. (Authorities issued stay permits for 30 or 60 days.) Although employers were required to provide workers with accommodation, reports quickly emerged revealing that Palestinians were being housed in inhumane accommodation—including some units without beds, toilets, or running water—which fell far below the standards of other foreign nationals’ accommodation. In April, a coalition of NGOs launched a petition urging the Israeli government the ensure the health and living conditions of Palestinian workers. The petitioners wrote, “The State of Israel is exploiting the most disadvantaged workers, keeping them under conditions akin to slavery. Their dignity is trampled upon as they are given accommodation in unsupervised construction sites, their health is neglected as no one provides them insurance during a global health crisis, and their liberty is denied when their employers process their papers but, in fact, bind them to their workplaces.” Authorities responded, issuing new legislation that required employers to pay for their employees’ health insurance—and eventually amending the emergency regulations to specify the living conditions that employers are required to provide. This was an important step: As countries such as Germany and Singapore have witnessed, poor worker accommodation units have frequently become virus hotspots. More recently, on 28 June, as cases began to rise again, Israel’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development informed all organisations employing Palestinians that employees would be required to remain in Israel for three weeks, and that they were to be provided with health insurance and adequate accommodation. Reports indicate that Palestinian workers have faced movement restrictions. They have been required to remain within the boundaries of their workplace and nearby accommodation, and may not leave the premises to purchase food or medication—their Israeli employer must instead provide such supplies.
After deconfinement began on 27 in Israel, new Covid infections increased sharply. However, the real number of infections in the country is difficult to assess because of fears amongst workers about the consequences of presenting themselves for testing. Migrant workers and asylum seekers appear to have a much higher infection rate than the rest of the population. The government's National Information and Knowledge Center reports that 25 percent of tested foreign workers were positive for COVID-19. However, due to the fear of losing their jobs if they are infected, many asylum-seekers do not get tested. Official estimates put the number of foreign workers in Tel Aviv alone at roughly 40,000. In a joint press statement on 11 May, UN officials called for the release of all children detained by the Israeli authorities in prisons and detention centres. Mentioning the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the statement said that “since the start of the COVID-19 crisis in Israel, legal proceedings are on hold, almost all prison visits are cancelled, and children are denied in-person access to their families and their lawyers. This creates additional hardship, psychological suffering, and prevents the child from receiving the legal advice to which they are entitled.” At the end of March, UN officials estimated that 194 Palestinian were detained in Israel. On 16 April, a Palestinian NGO pressed Israeli authorities to ensure the rights of detainees. The organisation, Al Mezan Center for Human Rights, highlighted “overcrowding, unsanitary conditions, and inadequate access to healthcare” while pointing out that Palestinian prisoner are classified separately to regular prisoners. A petition was submitted to the Israeli High Court of Justice to demand that inmates be allowed to communicate with their family. At the time of this update, the court only responded by allowing minors a 10-minute call every two weeks. On 14 April, a coalition of NGOs issued an open letter to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) urging the body to do more to protect “Palestinian prisoners’ right to health, particularly as many are minors, chronically ill, members of vulnerable groups, or held under administrative detention in contravention of international law.” The letter states that Israeli occupying authorities have disregarded Covid-19 guidelines in dealing with Palestinian prisoners and mentions that while the Israeli government released some 400 non-violent prisoners selected on the basis of health conditions and age, the government has not established the same release policy for Palestinian prisoners. Although some Palestinian prisoners had been freed, the government had not established any health or safety precautions to assist those infected or to protect the communities they are returning to.
Israel has implemented several measures impacting migrants and asylum seekers as well as prisoners. While one NGO, Hotline for Refugees and Migrants, has reported that they were been able to get some people released from immigration detention since the crisis began, the GDP has found no additional reports detailing what, if any, measures are being taken by authorities in administrative immigration detention centres. There have also been increasing calls by rights actors demanding that Israel release Palestinian children held in Israeli jails, in particular as prisoners’ exposure to the coronavirus has increassed. In a 11 April interview with the Times of Israel, an advocate from the group Hotline explained that since the crisis began they have been emphasizing in their work getting asylum seekers released from detention: “Someone can be in jail for six months for a very light felony, and then they are suddenly transferred to administrative detention. All it takes is a decision by an official from the Population and Immigration Authority, who deems them a danger to society. … At that point, they can be held for a year or even two. So we try to get them released and give them legal representation. It’s become more urgent now, because there is a risk of mass contagion in prisons. In recent weeks we have been able to release seven people, and we are currently representing 10 more in an attempt to set them free.” Israel closed its borders in mid-March, barring all non-citizens from entering the country to curb the spread of Covid-19. The Population and Immigration Authority said that an exception would be made for non-nationals whose “centre of life is in Israel.” The Ministry of the Interior then extended all visas for non-citizens that are currently in Israel until 30 June 2020. Also in early March, authorities suspended all family visits to the country’s prisons as well as lawyers’ visits. These and other measures provoked widespread protests in prisons, in particular after reports that prisoners had been exposed to security personnel who had tested positive for Covid-19. According to Haaretz (23 March), “Palestinian prisoners serving sentences in Israeli jails for security-related offenses are threatening to go on a hunger strike to protest measures enforced by the Israel Prison Service, seeking to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. The prisoners object to searches conducted in their cells by prison guards without any protective gloves or face masks, as well as a ban on leaving cells and meeting their attorneys and family members, who the prison service fears might infect prisoners or guards with the virus if allowed into prisons.” On 1 April 2020, a Palestinian prisoner released from Ofer prison who had spent 12 days detained alongside 36 people, tested positive for Covid-19. However, even after being notified of this, the Israeli prison administration announced no plans to release or even test the prisoners held there. Defense for Children International Palestine (DCIP) reported on 19 March: “Four Palestinian prisoners detained at Israel’s Megiddo prison, located inside Israel northwest of the occupied West Bank city of Jenin, were placed in isolation after they were in contact with a COVID-19 positive Israeli officer. … Megiddo prison is one of several detention facilities located inside Israel where Palestinian child ‘security prisoners’ are held. ‘We know the best way to prevent the spread of COVID-19 is for people to avoid being in close proximity to each other, said Ayed Abu Eqtaish, Accountability Program director at DCIP. ‘There is no way Israeli prison authorities can ensure the health and well-being of Palestinian child detainees as long as they continue to be in a custodial detention setting.’ An investigation by DCIP previously found Palestinian child prisoners detained in Israel’s Damon prison were held in poor conditions, including small rooms without access to clean and private bathroom facilities. Conditions such as these increase risks and exposure to unsanitary conditions where the COVID-19 virus thrives.”
Did the country release immigration detainees as a result of the pandemic?
Yes
2020
Did the country use legal "alternatives to detention" as part of pandemic detention releases?
Unknown
2021
Did the country Temporarily Cease or Restrict Issuing Detention Orders?
Unknown
2021
Did the Country Adopt These Pandemic-Related Measures for People in Immigration Detention?
Unknown (Unknown) Unknown Unknown Yes
2021
Did the Country Lock-Down Previously "Open" Reception Facilities, Shelters, Refugee Camps, or Other Forms of Accommodation for Migrant Workers or Other Non-Citizens?
Unknown
2021
Were cases of COVID-19 reported in immigration detention facilities or any other places used for immigration detention purposes?
Yes
2021
Did the Country Cease or Restrict Deportations/Removals During any Period After the Onset of the Pandemic?
Unknown
2021
Did the Country Release People from Criminal Prisons During the Pandemic?
Yes
2020
Did Officials Blame Migrants, Asylum Seekers, or Refugees for the Spread of COVID-19?
Unknown
2021
Did the Country Restrict Access to Asylum Procedures?
Unknown
2021
Did the Country Commence a National Vaccination Campaign?
Yes
2021
Were Populations of Concern Included/Excluded From the National Vaccination Campaign?
Unknown (Included) Unknown Included Unknown
2021