Just save the rheoric, Becky... as we all know, Reuters *and* the World Court are all a part of the anti-Jewish conspiracy, but I digress.... (note to reader, look up the word, "sarcasm" in the dictionary)

World Court says Israel's barrier must go
Fri 9 July, 2004 16:58

By Emma Thomasson

THE HAGUE (Reuters) - The World Court says Israel's barrier in the West Bank should be torn down and called on the United Nations to stop a project it said had illegally imposed hardship on thousands of Palestinians.

In a non-binding opinion hailed by Palestinians and rejected by Israel, the court said on Friday the barrier violated international humanitarian law and could presage the annexation of territory occupied by the Jewish state in the 1967 Middle East war.

The ruling could heighten Israel's concern about sanctions although its key ally the United States has vetoed Security Council resolutions against the Jewish state in the past.

Washington dismissed the U.N. court's intervention and the American on the 15-judge panel wrote a dissenting opinion.

"The wall ... cannot be justified by military exigencies or by the requirements of national security or public order," said Judge Shi Jiuyong of China as he read out the ruling.

"The construction of such a wall accordingly constitutes breaches by Israel of its obligations under the applicable international humanitarian law."

"The court considers that the construction of the wall and its associate regime creates a 'fait accompli' on the ground that could well become permanent, in which case ... it would be tantamount to de facto annexation," the court said.

"That construction ... thus severely impeded the exercise by the Palestinian people of its right to self-determination."

Shi said: "The court is of the view that the United Nations and especially the General Assembly and the Security Council should consider what further action is required to bring to an end the illegal situation resulting from the construction of the wall."

ISRAEL OUTRAGED

A senior adviser to Palestinian President Yasser Arafat said "as of today Israel should be viewed as an outlaw state".

"The next step is to approach the U.N. General Assembly and Security Council to adopt resolutions that will isolate and punish Israel," Nabil Abu Rdainah told Reuters.

Israel dismissed the decision: "It fails to address the essence of the problem and the very reason for building the fence -- Palestinian terror," said Foreign Ministry spokesman Yoni Peled. "If there were no terror, there would be no fence."

Palestinians say the barrier, which curves around Jewish settlements, is a precursor to annexation of land Israel occupied in the 1967 Middle East war and where they seek a viable state under the U.S.-backed "road map" peace plan.

The court acknowledged Israel's duty to protect its citizens but said it must do so within the law and should compensate Palestinians for homes and land lost or damaged by the building of the 100-metre (yard) wide strip of walls, ditches and fences.

Twists and turns of the barrier deviating from the Israel-West Bank boundary have trapped thousands of Palestinians in enclaves cut off from olive and citrus groves, schools, markets, public services and West Bank cities.

U.S. VETO?

Palestinians tend to enjoy considerable support at the United Nations. But Israel looks to the U.S. veto in the Security Council to block any bid to punish it in the way that apartheid South Africa was after the World Court ruled its occupation of South West Africa, now Namibia, illegal in 1971.

A spokesman for U.S. President George W. Bush brushed aside the ruling. He said the World Court, formally the International Court of Justice, was not the right place to settle the matter.

"This is an issue that should be resolved through the process that has been put in place, specifically the road map," White House spokesman Scott McClellan said.

The U.N. General Assembly requested an opinion in December and the Hague court, the U.N.'s top legal body held hearings in February overshadowed by public lobbying from both sides.

The judgement was expected to be one of the most closely monitored in the 58-year history of the World Court and attested to paralysis in Middle East peacemaking after years of violence.

Israeli officials say the barrier, about a third of whose planned more than 600-km (370-mile) length has been built since 2002, has already prevented dozens of suicide bomb attacks. Such bombers have killed hundreds of Israelis.

"We will abide by the ruling of our own High Court and not the panel in The Hague with judges from the European Union who are not suspected of being particularly disposed toward Israel," Justice Minister Yosef Lapid said earlier on Friday.

Five of the 15 judges are from the European Union.

Last week Israel's top court ordered one segment of the barrier re-routed to avoid cutting off Palestinian villagers from farms, jobs, public services and cities but ruled Israel had a right to build it in the West Bank on security grounds.