Israel on Thursday rejected a report by the BBC that Thai agricultural workers in the country are kept in conditions that are a threat to their health, saying in a multi-ministerial communique that the report did not accurately reflect the reality.

....A joint statement issued by the ministries of health, foreign affairs, agriculture, welfare, and the Population and Immigration Authority, declared that the report was “distorted.”...“We strongly reject the unprecedented allegations reported by the BBC concerning the terms of employment of Thai workers in Israel,” the statement said. “These claims portray a distorted picture of reality.”  

....“The results of the Ministry of Health investigation show that a significant number of the cases of death during sleep were caused by a genetic syndrome common to Thailand in general and a certain number of tribes living in the north-eastern part of the country in particular. This syndrome has also been noted among other Thai workers, not necessarily in the agricultural sector, in other countries around the world.”   

...The statement asserted authorities employ “professional enforcement units…to supervise the employment of foreign workers, workplace safety, health and compliance with the state’s labor laws. The state obligates workers and employers to carry out training, to enforce hygiene and safety regulations and to employ necessary protection measures.”

...“400 inspections are carried out every year and interpreters are used when needed,” the statement said. “More than 1,500 investigations have been opened since 2013 — into pay and working hours. We’ve issued 3,000 warnings, and 200 fines, totaling more than $3.8 million.”