Ukrainian family that fled war reportedly facing expulsion from Israel

A Ukrainian family that fled the Russian invasion and arrived in Israel has been denied entry and faces expulsion back to Poland, according to a Sunday report.

Andrei and Maria Kohil, and their son Vadislav, 10, were being held in a detention area of Ben Gurion Airport after arriving on Saturday, the Walla news site reported.

The Population, Immigration and Border Authority said it was concerned the family intends to stay in Israel permanently rather than just sit out the war.

The family came to Israel in the hope of joining Andrei’s brother, Yurislav, who has been in Israel since 2017 and is working without a visa, though he has applied for permission to work legally. Border control refused to grant the family entry due to fears it too will stay illegally, the report said.

The family flew to Israel from Poland and was scheduled to be expelled on Monday. It is appealing against the move, the report said.

“They have no intention to put down roots here, but just want to stay here temporarily because of the dangerous situation in their homeland,” the family’s lawyer, Tamir Belnick, told Walla. “They came to Israel as an anchor of stability and out of a hope that they will find temporary quiet here.”

Belnick said authorities were ignoring the fact that the family “fled because of the war and they do not, in practice, have anywhere to return to, aside from being destitute refugees in Poland.”

“Is it reasonable that Poland takes in a million refugees and Israel is not prepared to accept even a few hundred?” he asked.

He said there were ways to ensure the family doesn’t stay longer than necessary and that authorities should show some “humanity, sensitivity, and compassion” for the Ukrainians.

Expelling the family would just make them “someone else’s problem,” he said.

The Population, Immigration and Border Authority said in a statement that Yurislav has been working in Israel illegally for five years and his request to be granted legal status was rejected.

“In light of that, and including the fact that there is a concern that the goal of the family members is to set down roots in Israel, it was decided to refuse them entry,” the authority said.

Andrei works for a commercial transport company, Maria is a dental assistant by trade, and the family owns two apartments aside from their own home, the report said.

The Population, Immigration and Border Authority said there were 2,034 Ukrainians who have arrived in Israel since the start of Russia’s invasion, 112 of whom were denied entry to the country, Army Radio reported Sunday. The Ukrainians who receive citizenship will be recognized as immigrants fleeing a war zone and receive additional support from the government.

According to Israel’s Law of Return, Jews and their children, grandchildren, and spouses are eligible for citizenship.

Ukraine has about 43,300 people who self-identify as Jews and about 200,000 eligible to immigrate to Israel under its Law of Return for Jews and their relatives, according to a 2020 demographic study of European Jewry.

Immigration Minister Pnina Tamano-Shata said she expected tens of thousands of people to immigrate to Israel in the coming months in light of the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The Jewish Agency, which facilitates immigration to Israel, said it has already received thousands of immigration requests from Ukraine over the past week and a half, since the start of the Russian offensive, far more than it normally receives over the course of an entire year. Israeli officials have predicted a similar jump in immigration from Russia.

Last week, Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked said the government was preparing for a wave of tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of Jewish immigrants from Ukraine and Russia.

Last week, Israel tried to send back 14 Ukrainian immigrants, saying they were not eligible to enter under the Law of Return, but relented after pressure against the move, Channel 12 reported.

Israel has rarely granted refugee status to non-Jews in the past, and has not granted it to thousands of asylum seekers from Africa who arrived in the mid to late 2000s.

Government officials are scheduled to discuss on Sunday whether to accept greater numbers of non-Jewish refugees from Ukraine who are not eligible to immigrate to Israel.

Tens of thousands of Ukrainian asylum-seekers came to Israel following the 2014 war with Russia. Most came as tourists and tried to stay as refugees, but few were actually granted refugee status.

The government has required some Ukrainian refugees give deposits upon arriving to ensure they will leave Israel when their visas expire. Diaspora Minister Nachman Shai and Ukraine’s ambassador to Israel both criticized the move.