BICOM

As thousands of refugees arrive on Europe’s shores the debate on Israel’s role in alleviating the suffering of the victims of the Syrian Civil War in picking up.

At the weekly cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Netanyahu stated that Israel would not receive refugees at the moment. “Israel is not indifferent to the human tragedy of the refugees from Syria and Africa, but Israel is a small country, a very small country, that lacks demographic and geographic depth; therefore, we must control our borders, against both illegal migrants and terrorism. We will not allow Israel to be submerged by a wave of illegal migrants and terrorist activists.”

Criticising the Prime Minister’s position, Leader of the Opposition and the Zionist Union MK Isaac Herzog said, “Jews could not be indifferent” at a time when so many refugees are in need of a safe place. “I call on the government of Israel to act toward receiving refugees from the war in Syria, in addition to the humanitarian efforts it is already making.” These final comments relate to the estimated 1,700 Syrians who have received medical treatment in Israel since the Syrian conflict began in 2011.

While some other members of the opposition, such as MK Zehava Galon, leader of Meretz, supported Herzog’s call, others did not. Yair Lapid, leader of Yesh Atid, alluded to the fact that Israeli acceptance of Syrian refugees would open a backdoor to a “right-of-return” for Palestinian refugees. Members of the Prime Minister’s Likud party were also quick to oppose Herzog, echoing Lapid’s comments.

Former MK Colette Avital, who currently heads the Center of Organizations of Holocaust Survivors, said, according to Maariv: “When I look at the painful images of huge numbers of people swarming towards the doors of Europe, I can’t help but recall what we, the members of the Jewish people, experienced on our own flesh 70 years ago, when all the doors were closed to us … In my opinion, the Israeli government ought to announce that it will agree to take in here, symbolically, a certain number or refugees, not necessarily Syrians, if that bothers the security officials. A gesture of that kind won’t change the fate of either the Jewish people or the character of the state.”