But it was closed last year, as the ministry and the rest of the Government struggled to cope with the heavy weight of Soviet immigration.

Soviet Jewish immigration to Israel has reportedly reached a rate of about 5,000 people a month.

Israelis based the figure on the size of Soviet immigration.

Homelessness has increased since the wave of Soviet immigration in 1991.

Israel will censor news reports on Soviet Jewish immigration.

According to estimates, 70,000 Palestinians were unemployed before the gulf crisis and Soviet immigration began.

Politicians across the spectrum realize that Soviet immigration will be a potent issue in the next election.

While fear of attack is an important reason Soviet immigration has dropped, there are others as well.

The last monthly figure for Soviet Jewish immigration, from May, is 10,200.

Ask most Israelis, and they will say that national survival pre-empts all else, including the Soviet immigration.