Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu decided Sunday that the children of illegal foreign laborers who are enrolled in the state educational system would not be repatriated until the end of the school year. The decision came after an intense media campaign on the subject which portrayed the government as unfeeling because it wanted to deport illegal workers, and which focused on the workers' children.
The Prime Minister's Bureau announced the formation of a professional team headed by the Minister of Interior which would examine the specific case of children of illegal migrants who are enrolled in Israeli schools. The team's decision regarding the children would not pertain to other illegals, no matter what their age.
The Prime Minister also tasked the Finance Minister with leading a team that would include the Interior Minister and Justice Minister, which would decide upon a general policy for reducing the number of illegal foreign workers in Israel. The team would look into increasing the severity of punishments handed down to businesses that employ illegal workers, stepping up enforcement, and the creation of a physical barrier along Israel's border with Egypt.
The number of children of illegal workers enrolled in the education system has been estimated at between 1,200 and 2,500. The total number of illegal foreign workers in Israel is estimated to be in the hundreds of thousands.