Israeli man arrested for alleged organ trafficking of Syrian refugees

[MikeWB]

Nearly 4.3 million Syrian refugees are registered with the UN, a number not seen for decades. According to Al Jazeera, one in five Syrians is a refugee in the neighboring countries Turkey, Lebanon, Iraq, Jordan and Egypt, while approximately 6.5 million Syrians are refugees within their own country.

Exploitative markets have sprung up, preying on the vulnerable refugees in particular with human trafficking. Traffickers charge a high premium with the promise of reaching Europe or somewhere refugees can obtain asylum. However another, even more reprehensible market has sprung up--organ harvesting.

An Israeli man was arrested in Turkey for organ trafficking--he was accused of traveling to Istanbul and trying to convince vulnerable and desperate Syrians to sell their organs for travel money. His plan was to convince the refugees to sell their organs, then perform the operations in small, off-the-grid hospitals in Turkey.

The suspect has been identified as Boris Walker in Turkish media, however Israeli news outlet YNet reports the name of the man is more likely Boris Wolfman, a convicted organ trafficker in Israel.
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Reports indicate that Wolfman was wanted by Interpol for the same offense.

The transplants net the traffickers anywhere between 70,000 and 100,000 Euros, while the actual individuals giving up organs received only tens of thousands of Euros.

A Salon.com article reports that Wolfman "was charged with organ trafficking and organizing illegal transplants in Kosovo, Azerbaijan, and Sri Lanka, in a series of alleged offenses committed between 2008 and 2014."

Going so far as to blatantly advertise in Russian newspapers, YNet reports that Wolfman "did not explain to the donors about the physical and mental risks they face, denying them of the information they needed to make the decision."

A court in Turkey has ordered the extradition back to Israel of Wolfman, after he serves a 40-day sentence in a Turkish jail.

Organ trafficking is a serious, if not widely reported, international operation. According to the UN, the practice is as follows: "Firstly, there are cases where traffickers force or deceive the victims into giving up an organ. Secondly, there are cases where victims formally or informally agree to sell an organ and are cheated because they are not paid for the organ or are paid less than the promised price. Thirdly, vulnerable persons are treated for an ailment, which may or may not exist and thereupon organs are removed without the victim's knowledge."

UN standards and protocols make the practice illegal, as does the World Health Organization and the law in most countries.

However, the most vulnerable in society--today, refugees in Europe with little options for money and defense--are still at risk.
http://ahtribune.com/human-rights/238-israeli-organ-trafficking-of-syrian-refugees.html