JERUSALEM: Rising numbers of African economic migrants and asylum seekers have been slipping into Israel this year from Egypt, an Israeli Interior Ministry official said Monday. They appear to be racing to cross the border before Israel builds a fence there, an activist said. Israel has become a popular refuge for migrants because of its relatively open society and high wages. Thousands of migrants have paid Egyptian smugglers to sneak them across the lightly patrolled desert border. Most disappear into Israel's sizable illegal work force, while others seek asylum. To try to halt the influx, Israel's government is expected to begin building a barrier along the Israel-Egypt border next month. The border stretches for about 220 kilometers (130 miles) through the sand, rocks and hills of the Sinai desert. Sigal Rozen of the Hotline for Migrant Workers, an advocacy group, said news of the barrier project has reached the African migrants in Israel. "People call their families saying, 'Soon there will be no way to pass. You must pass now'," she said. There are at least 17,000 illegal African migrants and asylum seekers currently in Israel. This year about 1,100 people crossed illegally from Egypt each month on average, said Interior Ministry spokeswoman Sabine Haddad. Last year's average monthly number was 350, she said. Overnight from Sunday to Monday alone, 170 illegal migrants entered Israel, according to Haddad's figures. In addition, there are about 120,000 foreign workers with expired visas now in Israel, which makes them illegal, according to the government and activists. There are also about 35,000 economic migrants and asylum seekers, many from conflict zones in Sudan and Eritrea. Israelis worry that their growing numbers might detract from the Jewish character of their state. On the other hand, there is a wave of sympathy for those immigrants in Israel. "We have to treat them like human beings — we, too, have been in many countries," said lawmaker Yaakov Katz, who heads a parliamentary committee dealing with the issue. "But we can't open the gates."
