Avera Mengistu

Avera Mengistu (Hebrew: אברה מנגיסטו, Amharic: አበራ መንግስቱ?) is an Israeli Ethiopian Jew from Ashkelon, Israel, who crossed into Gaza through Zikim beach on September 7, 2014, was interrogated by Hamas, and Hamas claims he was then released. Since then, he has disappeared.[1] His family stated he was mentally unstable, was admitted before to a mental hospital and has been treated with medicine which he had stopped taking.[2]

On the day he disappeared, Mengistu was spotted near the security fence with Gaza carrying a bag. By the time an Israeli patrol arrived to the scene, Mengistu had crossed the fence and disappeared. Israel has contacted the Red Cross and officials in the Gaza Strip, demanding Mengistu return to Israeli territory.[1]

Incident

September 7, 2014 Mengistu walked on the beach in the Zikim area and arrived at the security fence between Israel and the Gaza strip. Upon touching he set an alarm with the IDF Gaza Division's northern brigade which sent a patrol unit and directed a camera at him. Mengistu managed to cross the fence before the patrol arrival. The soldiers fired in the air as a warning sign, and called on Mengistu to return to Israel, but he ignored them and kept moving away until he joined a group of Gazan fishermen. He hasn't been seen by any Israeli since then.[3]

Initially, a Hamas official said Mengistu was interrogated and seemed to have "psychological" problems, he then refused to return to Israel and then left to Egypt, hoping to get back to Ethiopia. Israeli officials said there is "credible intelligence" that Hamas holds Mengistu "against his will".[4] Later, Moussa Abu Marzouk, deputy chairman of Hamas’ political bureau, said in an interview with Al Jazeera that Mengistu wore uniforms, was mentally healthy and his case came up in negotiations for truce during Protective Edge operation, weeks before the date Israel claims Mengistu crossed.[2]

Gag order

A blanket gag order of the incident was placed on the affair which lasted 10 months, until July 9, 2015, but lively discussions took place on forums on Israeli-Ethiopians on social media and some reports on websites abroad.[1] Some clues about the affair were leaked in Different Arabic media outlets from which it made its way to international media and were quoted by the blogger Richard Silverstein.[5] Finally, the gag order was lifted following a request from Haaretz newspaper.[1] The NYTimes speculated an announcement made by Khaled Mashaal the previous day that Israel had asked to release "two soldiers and two bodies" may have "forced Israel's hand".[4]

Amir Rapaport of Makor Rishon writes "The main reason for the low profile in which the incident was dealt with was the fear that public announcement will make it difficult for Hamas to return Mengistu to Israel, since a massive [Palestinian] public pressure will be applied to Hamas to not return him without an extensive deal of prisoners swap".[6]

Claims of racist bias

Some critics claimed the Mengistu family was treated badly because they were Ethiopians. Mengistu's brother, Yalo, said that had Avera been a white person, the affair would have been handled differently and said "It's more than racism – I call it 'anti-Blackism'".[1] One of Hamas Twitter account post "Obviously, the real Israeli motto is 'leave no Ashkenazi man behind".[7]

Ayanawo Fareda Senbatu writes "There is no abandonment and no racism here... Anarchists are trying to brainwash us and are dragging us into dark places, claiming that the state ignored him and let him enter Gaza unhindered. Everyone is trying to use the pain of this family that has been destroyed socially and financially for his or her own purposes."[8]

Hamas demands

In 2016, Hamas demanded the release of 50 Palestinian prisoners who were released as part of the Gilad Shalit prisoner exchange and subsequently rearrested, as the "entry fee" to start negotiating for the release of Mengistu and for the separation of his negotiation from other issues.[9][10] An unnamed Israeli official said in July 2016 that Hamas wanted a deal similar to the Shalit exchange, in which hundreds of prisoners would be released in return for the bodies of IDF soldier Oron Shaul and IDF officer Hadar Goldin as well as the living civilians Mengistu and Hisham al-Sayed, an Israeli Bedouin held by Hamas.[11]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Two Israelis missing after disappearing into Gaza, one being held by Hamas". Haaretz. July 9, 2015.
  2. 1 2 "Hamas official: Mengistu isn't mentally unstable, captured during Gaza war". Haaretz. July 17, 2015.
  3. ↑ "Israel: No Hamas prisoner release for two missing Israelis". Ynet. July 10, 2015.
  4. 1 2 "Amid Detente With Hamas, Israel Says 2 Citizens Held in Gaza". NYTimes. July 9, 2015.
  5. ↑ "Two Israelis are held in Gaza". Maariv. July 9, 2015.
  6. ↑ Rapaport, Amir (July 10, 2015). "A question of responsibility". Makor Rishon. 935: 2.
  7. ↑ "Hamas takes a jab at Israel over missing Israeli Ethiopian". Ynet. July 9, 2015.
  8. ↑ "No racism, just a grim reality". Israel Hayom. July 10, 2015.
  9. ↑ "Hamas: Two conditions before any negotiation on prisoners". Asharq Al-Awsat. March 28, 2016.
  10. ↑ "IDF: An ISraeli crossed into Gaza". Ynet. July 12, 2016.
  11. ↑ "Hamas seeks another Shalit deal for soldiers' bodies, missing civilians". Ynet. July 4, 2016.
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