Surprise new figures on Sudanese migration to Israel, Lebanon

The Sudanese Government Apparatus that regulates the affairs of Sudanese citizens working abroad has stated that the official number of Sudanese who have illegally migrated to Israel stands at 10,000, while another 6,000 have migrated to Lebanon. On Monday, Dr Karrar Altuhami, the Secretary-General of the Apparatus, denied Sudanese immigrants to Israel are all from Darfur. “In fact only 25 percent of them are Darfuri, while the vast majority are from central and northern Sudan and other provinces.” The new statistical information is a surprise as previous official figures mentioned 5,000 Sudanese in Israel. The government “recognised the existence of small numbers of Sudanese in Israel, most of who were believed to be from Darfur or in a relationship with the armed movements.” However the new statistics came completely contrary to those expectations, indicating that three quarters of the Sudanese in Israel today are from central and northern Sudan and the other provinces. File photo: Displaced people on the move in Sudan (UN Photo / Tim McKulka)