Israel has delayed the planned deportation of several hundred children of foreign workers, with the interior ministry saying it was a humane gesture to allow them to finish their school year. The plight of the children made world headlines last week after "Strangers No More" - a film about Tel Aviv's Bialik-Rogozin School for immigrants and refugees - won the Oscar for best short documentary.
Several of the pupils who starred in the film are slated for deportation. Last year, the cabinet approved a proposal to deport 400 children of foreign workers while allowing another 800 to remain in the Jewish state. All 1,200 had been threatened with deportation. But Interior Minister Eli Yishai announced on Wednesday that the expulsion of children who are currently at school, would be delayed "by several months."
They come from dozens of countries, but mostly from Southeast Asia and Africa. Yishai, who heads up the ultra-Orthodox Shas party, defended the controversial decision, saying it was crucial to protect Israel from a massive influx of illegal immigration.
Comments
Comments are closed for this article.