Football Unites — BabaGol

Bluts Iyassu left Eritrea and walked for eight months in the desert before he arrived in Israel.

When he did, he was taken to Holot, a facility for asylum seekers in the south of the country.

Adam Yousif left his homeland in Darfur and was on the move for years to find himself a safe place he could call home before he was sent to Holot.

The horror these two young men have seen in their lives is devastating.

Due to the genocide in Darfur and the dictatorship in Eritrea, people from both countries flee in search of safety, to save their lives. The number of victims is growing every day and the number of people displaced, tortured or fleeing.

Over 44,000 asylum seekers have fled to Israel. Around 2,500 have been taken to Holot. While there, they are not recognised as refugees, but as temporary non-status residents, which leaves them with no healthcare, welfare, work permits or education options. If they are late or absent for their register hour, they are taken to Saharonim, a detention centre. From there, they're deported.

The residents of Holot are basically transparent human beings who are occasionally exposed to racism.

In Israel's current social climate, some local politicians have targeted asylum seekers as enemies of society, pushing to have them sent back to their home countries or elsewhere.

While the public discussion is tainted with racism, many students from Be’er Sheva University decided to take a stand. They organised a football match involving Israeli students and asylum seekers from Holot, to raise public awareness.

BabaGol found out about the event through the internet and decided to support it by donating the shirts for the match and telling the story behind it.

A story of horrific wars, fleeing asylum seekers, activist students, hope and football.