Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu attended a ceremony Wednesday to mark the completion of the security fence along the Egyptian border.
The construction of the fence – 230 kilometers in length – took two years, approximately half of the time that was originally planned, and cost approximately NIS 1.6 billion. It was put up to help deal with the problem of infiltrators sneaking into Israel through the lengthy border with Egypt.
Netanyahu said, "For seven months, not one infiltrator has reached Israel's cities. Just as we have stopped infiltration into Israel's cities, so too will we succeed in the next mission – repatriating the tens of thousands of infiltrators in Israel to their countries of origin. We have already begun to do so. I have appointed Hagai Hadas to deal with the issue and we can already see results of his efforts. We also need to complete the work on the country's other borders."
The Prime Minister told those in charge of the project, "This is a great achievement. You did the impossible. I would like to convey to you the gratitude of all Israelis."