Israel regards most of the Africans as illegal visitors in search of jobs, and largely rejects the position of human rights groups that many fled their countries in search of political asylum.

A statement late on Thursday from interior minister Gideon Sa'ar said Israeli regime would soon begin a staged process of deporting the migrants, most of whom have crossed the border with Egypt since 2006.

Sa'ar said an agreement had been reached with Uganda to absorb the "infiltrators", who would soon be urged "to leave of their own free will".

Sa'ar said the prime minister's special envoy Hagai Hadas had obtained Uganda's consent, Haaretz reported.

The chairwoman of parliament's committee on foreign workers, Michal Rozin, speaking by phone, said there were "rumours" that Uganda may have agreed to the arrangement in exchange for a deal for money and weapons.

There was no immediate comment from officials in Kampala.

Sa'ar said Israeli regime would set a deadline by which "certain sectors within the infiltrator population" would be asked to leave the occupied lands.

Once the deadline passed, the regime officials would stop issuing extensions on visas and would begin enforcing laws that prohibit the employment of illegal migrants, the minister said.

However Israeli regime is urged to expose more details of the plan, including whether there were assurances that the migrants would not be forcibly repatriated to Sudan or Eritrea, as many would be at risk of their lives in that case.

Human rights groups say Israel has jailed hundreds of African migrants and taken other steps to get them to agree to leave the country.

A few thousand are believed to have left Israel in the past year since a law enacted in 2012 authorizing migrants who lack any official residence permits to be jailed for up to three years.

NJF/NJF