Held in the desert

Held in the desert

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At a compound deep in the southern Israeli desert, African migrants protest against a law that has allowed hundreds like them to be held in custody here indefinitely.

They are at the Holot complex - a so-called "open" detention centre which detainees are allowed to leave for a few hours at a time. But given the facility’s remote location near the Egyptian frontier, travel is impractical and many say they do not go out every day.

. TEL AVIV, Israel. REUTERS/Amir Cohen

An African migrant sits inside a bus in Tel Aviv before it leaves for the desert detention centre.

Israel opened the compound in December after its Supreme Court stopped the practice of jailing illegal migrants for up to three years in regular prisons.

But in what the migrants call a cruel twist and activists say is a rights violation, a law passed the same month allows the migrants to be detained indefinitely, pending the resolution of their requests to stay in Israel.

Although they are allowed to leave the facility briefly each day, the closest town is about an hour's drive away, and detainees are required to check in every few hours. Failure to do so could mean transfer to a conventional prison.

. HOLOT, Israel. REUTERS/Amir Cohen

African migrants walk through the desert around the Holot complex with their wrists crossed over their heads as if they were handcuffed – a gesture of defiance.

More than 50,000 Africans - mainly Sudanese and Eritreans - have crossed into Israel surreptitiously through a once-porous, and now fenced, Egyptian border in the past eight years.

Rights groups argue that many of the migrants are worthy of political asylum, citing unrest and oppression in their homelands. Israel dismisses most as illegal job seekers.

Rather than conduct outright deportations, Israel is trying to coax migrants to return home voluntarily - including offering a cash incentive - or persuade other countries to accept them. The Holot complex fits into this drive.

“Legally people can be held at the open facility indefinitely, but the idea is for it to be a transit (point) for migrants before they go back home or to a third country," said Daniel Solomon, an Interior Ministry legal adviser.

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Slideshow

African migrants board a bus in Tel Aviv before it leaves for the new desert detention centre.
. TEL AVIV, Israel. REUTERS/Amir Cohen

African migrants board a bus in Tel Aviv before it leaves for the new desert detention centre.

Activists make a gesture of protest in front of a bus carrying African migrants.
. TEL AVIV, Israel. REUTERS/Amir Cohen

Activists make a gesture of protest in front of a bus carrying African migrants.

Migrants pull their baggage behind them as they arrive at Holot.
. HOLOT, Israel. REUTERS/Amir Cohen

Migrants pull their baggage behind them as they arrive at Holot.

Israeli prison guards stand at the gate as an African migrant enters the detention centre.
. HOLOT, Israel. REUTERS/Amir Cohen

Israeli prison guards stand at the gate as an African migrant enters the detention centre.

A migrant speaks on his phone near Holot.
. KTZIOT, Israel. REUTERS/Amir Cohen

A migrant speaks on his phone near Holot.

Others lie on benches at a bus stop outside the facility.
. HOLOT, Israel. REUTERS/Amir Cohen

Others lie on benches at a bus stop outside the facility.

African migrants walk down a road near the centre.
. HOLOT, Israel. REUTERS/Amir Cohen

African migrants walk down a road near the centre.

Migrants protest against Israel's detention policy toward them from inside the fence surrounding Holot.
. HOLOT, Israel. REUTERS/Amir Cohen

Migrants protest against Israel's detention policy toward them from inside the fence surrounding Holot.

A group of migrants take part in the protest.
. HOLOT, Israel. REUTERS/Amir Cohen

A group of migrants take part in the protest.

Others hold up signs during the demonstration.
. HOLOT, Israel. REUTERS/Amir Cohen

Others hold up signs during the demonstration.

A general view shows the Holot detention centre.
. KTZIOT, Israel. REUTERS/Amir Cohen

A general view shows the Holot detention centre.