Autistic Israeli seeking UK asylum from “apartheid state”

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An Israeli Jewish student is seeking asylum in the UK on the grounds that returning to Israel would result in him participating in "apartheid," according to multiple reports.

The 21-year-old ultra-Orthodox Jewish rabbinical student is appealing a previous asylum claim rejected in December last year, according to Middle East Eye (MEE). The case, in which he has been granted anonymity, will be freshly considered Monday in a Manchester court, court documents seen by Insider show.

The student's lawyer, Fahad Ansari of Riverway Law, says he fled Israel in 2017 after he received orders to join the military, MEE reported. According to The New Arab, the student has an autism spectrum disorder.

According to Al-Jazeera, the student said he strongly opposes Zionism and political and religious arguments.

Our client is attempting to prove his case in the context of Israel operating as an apartheid state," Ansari told MEE.

The student also fears imprisonment as a deserter, as well as reprisal for his political views, if he returns to Israel, Al-Jazeera reported.

Conscientious objectors in Israel are not uncommon, but it is the first time the UK has handled an Israeli asylum case on this basis, according to MEE. Any precedent set could have influence over future cases.

Ultra-Orthodox Israelis were exempt from military service until February this year, after decades of efforts to overturn the exemption, according to The Times of Israel.