South Tel Aviv and the world of refugees

Tel Aviv - Integration between the different centres isn’t the only goal during our official visit. We look to involve the three centres that feature both Arab and Jewish Israelis on the boys’ side while the ever-present and happy Milka is the only Jewish girl alongside the Arab girls. There are centres in Jerusalem, Palestine and Tel Aviv and integration within the centres themselves is also key to the project.

Since 2016, a group of refugee children with Filipino, Eritrean and Sudanese origins have been playing every week with a group of Jewish Israeli children from Tel Aviv. “Through this project, the children involved in Inter Campus play football, make new friendships and learn to accept others,” said Orli Fridtkiss who has been involved in social work for children and families in the south of the city for many years. "The connections formed by the children reflect the diverse communities, providing opportunities to meet and have discussions. Statistics from December 2018 state that there are 35,000 asylum seekers in Israel who have fled from political persecution, genocide, and civil wars at home.”

The parents of the refugee children live in tough socio-economic circumstances with jobs that keep them busy through the day and often the night as well. They don’t have the chances to help their children take part in extracurricular activities and for this reason, Inter Campus represents an important opportunity to play, have fun and develop.