Human rights groups and the Arab world have furiously objected to a new IDF policy that makes it easier for Gaza and foreign infiltrators from Judea and Samaria to appeal orders that they return home.
The new rules allow the infiltrators and illegal residents 72 hours, instead of the current 24 hours, to appeal repatriation orders. The new regulations also allow for the deportation of foreign nationals illegally in the country.
The latest policy also is aimed at satisfying objections by the High Court, which in the past was the only avenue of appeal for illegal Arabs facing deportation. They now can appeal directly to an IDF military review court, which includes Israeli Arabs, Bedouin, Druze and Jews who consider each case, IDF spokesman Captain Barak Raz explained to Israel National News.
Although the IDF specifically said there is no intention for mass deportations and that all Arabs with work permits are not affected, foreign media have headlined the new policy with objections from human rights groups.
Captain Raz said there has been no change in policy and that the new rules “make it easier for people without the right paperwork to appeal.”
However, The New York Times, Christian Science Monitor and other major media sites reported the orders as opening the door to a mass expulsion policy and what Syrian President Bashar Assad called “ethnic cleansing.” In fact, a total of five Arabs were returned to their homes so far this year, Captain Raz said.
Previous military rules were unable to overcome the problem of infiltration of foreign Arabs as well as those from the Hamas-controlled Gaza area who marry an Arab from Judea and Samaria and then use that as claim for residency. Many such infiltrators later spy for terrorists who are planning to carry out an attack.
The former policy defined infiltrators as someone who entered Israel from a foreign country; it now includes those without proper legal papers.