On Monday, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights expressed its "concern" about the "high number" of injured people during riots last weekend in Tel Aviv involving Eritreans and requested an investigation.

The High Commissioner said on the "X" platform that it was "concerned about the high number of wounded during demonstrations in which Eritrean opponents participated, especially in Israel."

"It is vital to conduct investigations, avoid hate speech, particularly by the authorities, and respect the principle of non-refoulement," she stressed.
A spokeswoman for the UNHCR told AFP in an email to other demonstrations by Eritreans in Switzerland and Norway, "but in Israel there were a large number of injured."

The clashes erupted on Saturday after hundreds of Eritreans gathered in front of a hall in Tel Aviv where an event in support of the regime was supposed to be held, organized by the Eritrean embassy in Israel.

The Israeli police considered the gathering an unauthorized demonstration and ordered the street to be cleared. Clashes took place, leaving about 140 injured. Among the wounded were about 12 Eritrean asylum seekers who were hit by live bullets fired by the police.

The police indicated that 49 were wounded in their ranks.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that his country is considering deporting about 1,000 Eritreans who participated in the riots, saying that what happened crossed the "red line".

Eritrea has been ruled by President Isaias Afwerki with an iron fist since the country's official declaration of independence in 1993. It is one of the most isolated countries in the world and ranks very low in global rankings of press freedom, human rights, civil liberties and economic development.

According to statistics released in June, the number of Eritrean asylum seekers reached 17,850, most of whom came to Israel irregularly from the Egyptian Sinai Peninsula years ago, and a large number of them settled in poor neighborhoods in the coastal city of Tel Aviv.