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Wednesday, June 30, 2004

Israeli court says security fence violates local residents' human rights
Jeannie Shawl at 9:35 AM ET

Israel's Supreme Court has ordered the government to change its West Bank security fence because the current route violates human rights of the local Palestinian population by severely violating their freedom of movement (as first reported in this morning's foreign press review on JURIST's Paper Chase). In it's Wednesday decision, the court wrote:
[The] relationship between the injury to the local inhabitants and the security benefit from the construction of the Separation Fence along the route, as determined by the military commander, is not proportionate. The route disrupts the delicate balance between the obligation of the military commander to preserve security and his obligation to provide for the needs of the local inhabitants. This approach is based on the fact that the route which the military commander established for the Security Fence – which separates the local inhabitants from their agricultural lands – injures the local inhabitants in a severe and acute way, while violating their rights under humanitarian international law.... The route of the Separation Fence severely violates their right of property and their freedom of movement. Their livelihood is severely impaired. The difficult reality of life from which they have suffered (due, for example, to high unemployment in that area) will only become more severe.
Read the full decision here [PDF]. AP has the full story. The Israeli court decision comes before the International Court of Justice is expected to deliver its advisory opinion on the legality of the wall July 9. Paper Chase has background on the upcoming ICJ decision. Materials for the ICJ case can be found here.



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