The genocide in Darfur –– which has killed hundreds of thousands, and displaced more than 2.5 million people –– has stung the conscience of humanity, but little else. As the slaughter continues, and the number of refugees mounts, the nations of the world have done far too little. They must step up in a meaningful way.
The crisis has taken on serious dimensions for Israel. As our cover story this week points out, several hundred Darfurian refugees, at enormous risk to their lives, have fled to Egypt, crossed the Sinai and wound up on Israel’s doorstep seeking asylum.
Because they hail from Sudan –– an Islamic nation riddled with corruption and terrorism –– the refugees have been designated enemy nationals, per Israeli law. Some have been kept in prisons, others in temporary camps, their status and futures uncertain.
The big question is: What should Israel do?
If Israel takes them in, as Jewish ethics would seem to dictate, that could open the door to a flood of refugees. Not only might this overtax Israel’s already burdened social services system, it could allow some with malevolent motives to slip in.
No one can deny that Israel’s security is a critically important issue.
Yet if Israel sends the refugees back to Egypt or Sudan, they would almost certainly face extreme persecution or death. Would this not fly in the face of the very principles upon which the Jewish state was founded?
How can a prosperous nation, itself peopled by the tempest-tossed of the last century, turn its back on those hailing from the world’s most blighted spot?
These are complicated questions with no easy answers. It is not for us, living in the lap of luxury here in California, to offer Israel any facile prescriptions.
Yet as our story reveals, many Israelis are wrestling with the issue as well. Clearly, they understand the stakes, the risks and the moral dimensions. The debate goes on, but we’re glad Israelis are seriously considering all options.
The fairest solution would likely require Israel to process the refugees case by case, determining which have legitimate claims for asylum. Some may be permitted to stay, but for those who cannot, we would hope Israel will find them safe haven elsewhere.
With so much ugliness in the world, we Jews still believe in Israel as a beacon of freedom and decency, even for non-Jews. To borrow a line from Emma Lazarus’ immortal poem, “The New Colossus,” may it be that Israel lifts that lamp beside her own golden door.
CopyrightJ, the Jewish news weekly of Northern California