"We are proud of our work with South Sudanese pupils. Our work has been praised and sends a message to the international community about Israel's morality," a team of teachers from the Bialik-Rogozin School in south Tel Aviv in a petition to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The teachers, along with dozens of others from Tel Aviv and Arad, oppose the deportation of the children from Israel and are asking the prime minister to ensure their welfare.
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"As Israeli citizens we are proud of our pedagogical and humanist work (with them)," the teachers wrote. "Most of the pupils have started studying in Israeli schools within the last five years. They've shared their hard experiences with us."
"We listened to five-year-olds and 15-year-olds and taught them Hebrew, civics, math, and English. We shared the values that we, Israelis, were raised on – the same values the state was founded on."
'We are terrified for their safety,' the staff says (Photo: Yaron Brenner)
Some 300 children of refugees and foreign workers study at the Bialik-Rogozin School. Last year, the school was featured in the Oscar-winning documentary "Stranger No More."
Lily Hadar, the school librarian, expressed the faculty's deep sadness caused by the knowledge that at any minute the children could be deported back to South Sudan. "We are terrified for their safety," Hadar said. "Every day we pray that the state of Israel will show humanity and courage and reverse its decision to deport them."
"We hope that our country's moral strength will serve as a light for our pupils from South Sudan," the teachers wrote.