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Rival Eritrean Groups Clash in Israel, Leaving Dozens Hurt

02 September 2023, Israel, Tel Aviv: Eritrean asylum seekers clash with police at a demonstration in Tel Aviv, ahead of an event that was planned by the Eritrean embassy. Photo: Ilia Yefimovich/dpa
02 September 2023, Israel, Tel Aviv: Eritrean asylum seekers clash with police at a demonstration in Tel Aviv, ahead of an event that was planned by the Eritrean embassy. Photo: Ilia Yefimovich/dpa
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Rival Eritrean Groups Clash in Israel, Leaving Dozens Hurt

02 September 2023, Israel, Tel Aviv: Eritrean asylum seekers clash with police at a demonstration in Tel Aviv, ahead of an event that was planned by the Eritrean embassy. Photo: Ilia Yefimovich/dpa
02 September 2023, Israel, Tel Aviv: Eritrean asylum seekers clash with police at a demonstration in Tel Aviv, ahead of an event that was planned by the Eritrean embassy. Photo: Ilia Yefimovich/dpa

Hundreds of Eritrean government supporters and opponents clashed with each other and with Israeli police Saturday, leaving dozens injured in one of the most violent street confrontations among African asylum seekers and migrants in Tel Aviv in recent memory.
Among those hurt were 30 police officers and three protesters hit by police fire, The Associated Press reported.
Eritreans from both sides faced off with construction lumber, pieces of metal, rocks and at least one axe, tearing through a neighborhood of south Tel Aviv where many asylum seekers live. Protesters smashed shop windows and police cars, and blood spatter was seen on sidewalks. One government supporter was lying in a puddle of blood in a children’s playground.
Israeli police in riot gear shot tear gas, stun grenades and live rounds while officers on horseback tried to control the protesters, who broke through barricades and hurled chunks rocks at the police. Police said officers resorted to live fire when they felt their lives were in danger.
The clashes came as Eritrean government supporters marked the 30th anniversary of the current ruler's rise to power. The event was held near the Eritrean embassy in south Tel Aviv.
Police said Eritrean government supporters and opponents had received permission for separate events Saturday, and had promised to stay away from each other.
At some point, the promises were broken, said Chaim Bublil, a Tel Aviv police commander.
“A decision was made by the government opponents to break through the barriers, to clash with the police, to throw stones, to hit police officers,” Bublil told reporters at the scene.
He said the police had arrested 39 people and confiscated tasers, knives and clubs.
The Magen David Adom rescue service said at least 114 people were hurt, including eight who were in serious condition. The others had moderate or mild injuries. Of those hurt, 30 were police officers, said Bublil.
A spokesperson for Tel Aviv’s Ichilov Hospital said it was treating 11 patients for gunshot wounds. Police said three protesters were wounded by police fire.
By late Saturday afternoon, the clashes had stopped. Police were still rounding up protesters, putting them on buses.

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Japan and China Accuse Each Other of Violating Airspace Around Disputed East China Sea Islands

FILE - Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force P-3C Orion surveillance plane flies over the disputed islands, called the Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China, in the East China Sea, on Oct. 13, 2011. (Kyodo News via AP, File)
FILE - Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force P-3C Orion surveillance plane flies over the disputed islands, called the Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China, in the East China Sea, on Oct. 13, 2011. (Kyodo News via AP, File)
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Japan and China Accuse Each Other of Violating Airspace Around Disputed East China Sea Islands

FILE - Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force P-3C Orion surveillance plane flies over the disputed islands, called the Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China, in the East China Sea, on Oct. 13, 2011. (Kyodo News via AP, File)
FILE - Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force P-3C Orion surveillance plane flies over the disputed islands, called the Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China, in the East China Sea, on Oct. 13, 2011. (Kyodo News via AP, File)

Japan and China are accusing each other of violating the airspace around the Japanese-controlled East China Sea islands that Beijing also claims.
Japan´s Foreign Ministry issued a statement saying that it has protested to Beijing after a Chinese helicopter that took off from one of China´s four coast guard boats had entered Japan´s territorial waters around the Senkaku island, violating the Japanese airspace around them for about 15 minutes on Saturday.
In response to the airspace intrusion, Japan´s Self-Defense Force scrambled fighter jets, the Defense Ministry said.
China routinely sends coast guard vessels and aircraft into waters and airspace surrounding the islands, which China calls the Diaoyu, to harass Japanese vessels in the area and force Japan to scramble jets in response, The Associated Press said.
The latest territorial flap comes as Japan and China were appearing to have warm ties as both countries seek to mitigate damages from the US tariff war.
The Japanese Foreign Ministry said it lodged a "very severe protest" through the Chinese embassy in Japan, claiming that China Coast Guard actions infringed Japan´s sovereignty and urging the Chinese government to ensure preventive measures.
China also said in a statement that it took a similar step and protested to Japan over a Japanese civilian aircraft violating its airspace around the islands, saying it was "strongly dissatisfied" about Japanese violation of China´s sovereignty.
Japanese officials are investigating a possible connection between the Chinese coast guard helicopter´s airspace intrusion and the small Japanese civilian aircraft flying in the area around the same time.
Saturday´s intrusion was the first by China since a Chinese reconnaissance aircraft violated the Japanese airspace off the southern prefecture of Nagasaki. Chinese aircraft have also violated the Japanese airspace around the Senkaku twice in the past.