The Finance Ministry says there is no need for the facility being
built in the Negev to house thousands of African migrants and that canceling
the project could save more than NIS 300 million.
In economic proposals for 2013-14, the ministry notes that the
fences and anti-infiltration laws have reduced “the number of African migrants
crossing into Israel down to marginal figures. According to the latest
information, the need for a residential facility to house around 5,000 people
is no longer pressing.”
As fences were completed along the Egyptian border, the number of
migrants crossing into Israel dropped. Last July, when the plans to build the Saharonim
facility were approved, only 268 African migrants crossed into Israel. That
compared with roughly 2,000 in May and 1,000 in June.
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