 |
 |
 |
|
|
The International Court of Justice is expected to rule that the security barrier contravenes international law and that it must be dismantled.
|
|
|
|
|
|
| By Ellis Shuman July 9, 2004 |
|
| |
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague will today issue its much-anticipated advisory opinion on the legality of Israel's security fence. According to media reports, the court is expected to rule that the barrier contravenes international law and that it must be dismantled. Following the ruling, Palestinians plan to push for UN sanctions against Israel, while Israel expects the United States to veto possible Security Council resolutions.
The court's ruling will be announced at 4 p.m. Israel time Friday afternoon. It is widely assumed that the 15-member judicial panel will state, in a ruling entitled "Legal implications of the construction of the barrier in Palestinian occupied territory," that the fence is illegal.
Haaretz reported today, based on draft documents it obtained, that the court ruled that on the basis of the material available to it, "[it] is not convinced that the specific course Israel has chosen for the wall was necessary to attain its security objectives."
"The construction of such a wall accordingly constitutes breaches by Israel of its various obligations under the applicable international humanitarian law and human rights instruments," Haaretz quoted the documents as saying.
"The wall, along the route chosen, and its associated regime, gravely infringes a number of rights of Palestinians residing in the territory occupied by Israel, and the infringements resulting from that route cannot be justified by military exigencies or by the requirements of national security or public order," the court ruling said, according to the report.
According to the Haaretz report, 14 out of the 15 judges voted in favor of the ruling, with only American Thomas Buerghenthal dissenting.
The opinion, which marks the first time the court has ruled on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, is non-binding. Palestinians plan to use the ruling in a push for United Nations sanctions against Israel.
In anticipation of a battle in the UN over the fence, Israel has already been lobbying the United States, Europe, and even Jordan and Egypt to counter such activity. A Foreign Ministry official said Israel expects a U.S. veto of any Security Council resolution.
"We can't accept any external involvement from the International Court of Justice," said Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom, who spoke with American officials in Washington this week. "We don't believe it is the place where this issue should be discussed," he said.
"Countries that care about the functioning of the United Nations should say, 'Enough is enough, there is a diplomatic process, enough with these games,'" Foreign Minister legal adviser Alan Baker said.
According to media reports, Israeli officials will respond to the court ruling not by attacking the court itself, or by dealing with the details of the ruling, but rather by arguing that the whole affair is a "cynical political exercise" initiated by the Palestinians.
Israel, which along with the United States and European countries opposed the ICJ's discussing the fence and boycotted the proceedings, has contended that the fence is a security barrier made necessary by Palestinian terrorist attacks, and that its route does not serve as a political boundary.
Last month, Israel's High Court of Justice ordered changes in the route of the security barrier in the Jerusalem area in order to minimize hardship to the Palestinian population. The Defense Ministry is now preparing an alternative route for some 30 kilometers of a 40-kilometer stretch, and the new route is expected to more closely follow the 1967 Green Line border.
|
|
 
|
|
|
|
Click on the blue headline to read a Talkback comment and respond to it. Click on the  icon to send a private email to the talkback writer. The icon appears only if the writer has decided to be contacted. If no popup window appears, please make sure your popup blocker allows israelinsider.com.
|
|
| |
|
|
