At an annual event discussing ways to end human trafficking, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu declared that the problem of illegal immigration into Israel “has been solved.” With no more than a few dozen illegals managing to get into Israel in recent months, Netanyahu said that for all intents and purposes, his government had managed to put an end to illegal immigration, and with it, the problem of human trafficking.

“Human trafficking, human torture, and murder of children were phenomena that accompanied the parade of illegals that entered the country. From the moment we stemmed this flow, with the intent of stopping illegal workers from entering the country, we were able to stop these phenomena as well,” he said.

“A year ago, there were thousands arriving here, and the rate of arrival was increasing. We strengthened our borders. And last month, just 40 illegals entered the country, and none of them reached the cities. We have halted the illegal entries, and with it the human trafficking crimes that accompanied it,” Netanyahu said.

Netanyahu added that Israel had come a long way in the human trafficking area. “For the first time, Israel appears in U.S. State Department reports among the top countries fighting against human trafficking. For the first time ever, according to State Department figures, not one victim of human trafficking entered the country in 2012. If someone saves a life, [the Talmud says], it is as if he saved the whole world,” Netanyahu added. “And we have saved many worlds.”