Ghanaians seeking asylum in Israel ‘are not serious’ – Israeli Ambassador to Ghana

Israeli Ambassador to Ghana, H E. Ami Mehl has described the migration of Ghanaians to Israel to seek asylum as a joke.

According to him, it is ridiculous for Ghanaians to seek asylum in Israel since Ghana is one of the most democratic countries in the world.

Addressing the media at the British Council Tuesday, Ami Mehl revealed that between 2014 and 2017, about 381 Ghanaians sought asylum in Israel.

“In the last four years, 2014 to 2017, 381 Ghanaians were seeking for asylum in Israel. Really? Ghanaians need refuge in Israel? It’s a joke. This is not serious. Ghana is one of the most democratic countries in the world,” he posited.

He advised Ghanaians not to travel out of Ghana with the aim of seeking asylum abroad but should rather search for greener pastures.

He assured that Africans seeking refuge in Israel will not be deported but given an opportunity to make ends meet if they have a valid reason for staying there.

“Those who are seeking for refuge are not going to be deported. They are going to be checked and if there is a reason for them to stay, they will stay. If there is no reason being refugees, they will leave. But it will take time,” he maintained.

The Israeli government sparked a social media outrage with its decision to deport around 40,000 asylum seekers from Israel.

According to Israel's Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely, people in Tel Aviv live under "migrants' terror".

Hotovely specified that citizens in southern neighborhoods in Tel Aviv were under threat of violence and sexual harassment by African migrants, which she refers to as "infiltrators".