TA police chief: Migrants committing 'survival crimes'

During Knesset session on wave of violence, Commander Aharon Aksol says employing foreign migrants would curb phenomenon. MK Danon: Solution is simple – deportation

Omri Efraim|Published: 05.21.12 , 13:25

Tel Aviv District Police Commander Aharon Aksol said the past few months have seen a surge in violent crimes committed by illegal immigrants, but added that the phenomenon should not be attributed only to the infiltrators who reside in the city's southern area, but to "Israeli society as a whole."

During a meeting at the Knesset on the wave of violence, Aksol said the growing tension between the residents of south Tel Aviv and the infiltrators is dangerous. He claimed that something must be done to curb the violence "or else the situation may deteriorate."

Echoing comments made by Police Commissioner Yohanan Danino, Aksol urged Israeli business owners to employ foreign migrants. "We believe they are committing 'survival crimes,' and at this point employing the infiltrators, in one way or another, would calm the situation," he told the lawmakers.

MK Danny Danon (Likud) responded harshly to the police commander's comments, saying "an enemy state, a state of infiltrators, has been established. The solution is simple – they must be deported. They should not be allowed to work here even for one day.

Justice Minister Yaakov Neeman also addressed the issue during an attorneys' conference in Eilat on Monday. According to him, two years ago the government began taking action to "fight the infiltration phenomenon, which threatens the security of Israel's citizens, but the process is ongoing."

The minister said the completion of the security fence that is being erected along the Egyptian border will curb the phenomenon, adding that Israel was also conducting negotiations to return the foreign migrants to their home countries, "or to a third country."