ASSAF – Aid Organization for Refugees and Asylum Seekers in Israel is a registered non-government, non-profit organization that was established in 2007 in response to an influx into Israel of survivors of the genocide in Sudan, and other African countries where their lives are in immediate danger.
ASSAF’s mission is to assist those entering Israel in search of asylum, to strengthen their coping mechanisms, and to advocate for refugees’ rights and policy change on the basis of international law. ASSAF provides coordinated psychosocial and humanitarian responses to refugees and asylum seekers who are in desperate need of welfare support following their forced migration. In addition, ASSAF carries out advocacy, community development and policy change work in order to improve the rights of refugees in Israel.
Israel’s refugee population currently stands at an estimated 20,000. Many of these refugees live in desperate and inhumane conditions, having limited or no access to employment, or even work permits. To make matters worse, there exists no national or official network of services for refugees. Unfortunately, Israel does not uphold its obligations to refugees, despite being an initiator and signatory of the 1951 UN Refugee Convention. Refugees and asylum seekers in Israel are in a state of protracted distress, and in many cases, ASSAF is the central address for support, practical assistance and advocacy.
