Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked defends her refugee policy amid criticism that it is not lenient enough.
“Contrary to criticism, the vast majority of those who came to Israel were allowed to enter and stay here until the [war] passes,” she says in a Facebook post.
Channel 12 reports that over 200 Ukrainian refugees have been turned away after arriving at Ben Gurion airport.
“At the same time, any sane person understands that the tiny nation-state of the Jewish people cannot be a substitute for the various European countries, including Ukraine’s neighbors, who have opened their borders generously [to refugees],” Shaked adds.
Israel has agreed to allow some 20,000 Ukrainians who were residing in the country illegally before the invasion to remain, while also granting temporary visas to 5,000 non-Jewish refugees escaping the war. All Jewish Ukrainians are allowed in and given citizenship under the Law of Return.
Help us report truthfully on social media
As a multimedia journalist, my job is to take the quality, fact-based journalism produced by The Times of Israel newsroom and make it accessible across every platform — from Instagram posts to podcasts to short-form videos.
This is how many, especially young people, consume news these days. But misinformation is rampant on social media. Our team at ToI produces accurate, responsible short-form reporting on Israel and the Jewish world.
If you believe in the importance of factual social media journalism, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. Your financial support is essential to sustain responsible multimedia reporting.
— Gabriella Jacobs, multimedia journalist
Support our work
Support our work
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this
You're a dedicated reader
We’re really pleased that you’ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month.
That’s why we started the Times of Israel - to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.
So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven’t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.
For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.
Thank you,
David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel
Join Our Community
Join Our Community
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this
From the Liveblog of
Friday, March 11, 2022
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on Google
