Increasingly distressed over the inflow of African refugees and labor migrants through its western border with Egypt, Israel has decided to begin deporting thousands of South Sudan nationals from April.

"They (the South Sudanese slated for deportation) were not awarded the status of refugees, which is why they can be expelled. We are working in accordance with a government decision," Sabin Hadad, a spokeswoman for the Israeli Population and Immigration Authority (PMA), told Xinhua on Sunday.

The Israeli authorities notified the South Sudanese in early January that they must leave Israel by March 31, according to the spokeswomen. Every adult is entitled to receive financial assistance worth 1,000 euros (about 1,317 U.S. dollars), as well as a free flight back home.

Several hundred people rallied in Tel Aviv on Saturday to protest against the deportation plan. The demonstrators called on the Israeli government to halt the deportation until the situation in South Sudan stabilizes so as to ensure the infiltrators' safe return.

In parallel, a smaller group of southern Tel Aviv residents held a counter protest in support of the deportation.

The Israeli authorities maintain that the newly-established South Sudan's independence enables the safe return of their nationals.

The PMA estimates that 30,000 Africans, many of whom fled civil wars and other humanitarian crises in their countries, currently reside in Israel. Some 3,000 of them are from South Sudan, while others come from Eritrea, Ethiopia, Nigeria and the Ivory Coast. Most of them enter Israel virtually unimpeded through the porous border with Egypt, which largely lacks a fence and other security measures.

On Thursday night, Israeli troops patrolling the border opened fire on a group of infiltrators, killing one and injuring three others.

The soldiers acted in accordance with the rules of engagement, and fired only after their calls on the group to turn back were ignored, the military said in a statement.

It was unclear if the infiltrators attempted to smuggle weapons or contraband into Israel. A helicopter evacuated the injured to an Israeli hospital for medical care, according to the statement.

In December, the Israeli cabinet approved a 168-million-U.S.- dollar plan to combat the continued flow of infiltrators, after the number of infiltrators reached a record-breaking level in 2011.

"The infiltrators pose a threat to the economy, society, infrastructure, welfare and to domestic security... Entire populations are beginning to move toward Israel," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told ministers prior to their voting in favor of the plan.

"If we don't work to stop the flood, we'll simply be washed away, with 100,000 refugees expected to cross into the country every year," Netanyahu added.

The prime minister said that the plan's first priority is to complete the construction of a 240 km-long steel barrier along the Egyptian frontier to defend against potential terror attacks and to stem the flow of infiltrators. Israel is also building a detention facility in the Negev desert that will be able to house up to 3,000 infiltrators at a time.

Netanyahu is expected to visit Africa later this year to discuss the return of infiltrators to their countries.