Shas Chairman Eli Yishai vowed Thursday that he "will not rest" until illegal migrant workers and their children are evicted from Israel. In an interview with Arutz Sheva he attacked the decision by several Knesset Members to bring several migrant workers' children into the committee room where the matter was being debated.
"Our faction whip has already complained to the Ethics Committee in the claim that there was an illegal action here. There was an attempt to put on a show. They are using children and it is a very ugly thing. There are all sorts of organizations and politicians that are trying to turn the Knesset into a theater.”
"Those children understand nothing about this issue. On the contrary – if someone really explained things to them, they too would agree to go home to their mother and father, their grandfather and grandmother. Just as we came to Israel and left Morocco and Yemen in order to return to our roots, so they need to return to their roots, to their country of origin, but instead of that those MKs and groups make cynical use of them.”
Zionism threatened
The problem is a threat to the State of Israel, Yishai said. “The Finance Minister has already said that this is a phenomenon that is a threat to the entire Zionist endeavor and we must not let this situation continue. Even former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon wanted to evict the foreign workers from here. They are flooding us and I want to remind you that there are also thousands of illegal migrants that come here from Sudan. This is a grave phenomenon that we must not put up with. Anyone whose visa for staying here runs out must be evicted.”
If Israel shows determination the phenomenon will disappear, Yishai said. “Once we tell every foreign worker whose visa has expired that we will evict him, even if the wife is pregnant, then they will not test us. They try to infiltrate here just because they see that the State of Israel supports them.”
Yishai warned that if Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu does not meet his demands, he will remove the Immigration Authority from his responsibility. “Ministers of Interior did not deal with the matter of foreign workers because it was unpopular,” he said. “I do it today despite the fact that it is unpopular, but I demand that the Prime Minister give me backing. The foreign workers are a serious problem for the State of Israel and they also use up a lot of funds, in employment, education and welfare, at the expense of the residents of the State of Israel.”