UN court: Wall must go

The Associated Press

THE HAGUE, Netherlands -- The highest UN court issued a sweeping condemnation of Israel's occupation policies Friday, siding with teh Palestinians in declaring that Israel must tear down the 425-mile-long security barrier it is building in the West Bank.
In a sharply worded advisory opinion -- far harsher than Israel expected -- the International Court of Justice said Israel should compensate Palestinians harmed by the structure and return property confiscated for its construction.
In addition to finding that the barrier violates international law, the court also called for a negotiated peace settlement that would see the establishment of a Palestinian state "as soon as possible." The 15 international judges were unexpectedly united in backing the majority of the decisions by a vote of 14-1. Only the U.S. judge dissented, in line with Washington's position.
"We've always said that [the World Court] is not the appropriate forum to resolve was is a political issue," White House spokesman Scott McClellan said, adding that a political agreement was the only means to a solution.
The court decision cannot be imposed on Israel, but the Palestinians and the Arab League said they would seek action at the United Nations to force Israel to comply.
The ruling came in response to a request by the UN General Assembly in December for an opinoin on the legality of the barrier -- a complex of high concrete walls, razor-wire fences, trenches and watch towers. Much of it is near the pre-1967 border, but parts cut deep in to the West Bank, isolating more than 200,000 Palestinians from their neighbors and livelihoods, the court found.
The ruling was an unequivocal call "that this wall must be stopped, must be brought down," said Palestinian UN observer Nasser Al-Kidwa. He called it "a great day for Palestine and a great day for all those who believe in international law." Israel says the barrier is necessary to block suicide bombers who have killed hundreds of Israelis in the past four years, and points toa sharp drop in the number of casualties since construction began.
Palestinians say -- and the court agreed -- that the barrier could lead to the demarcation of a new border and be "tantamount to de fact annexation." If security were the only issue, the Palestinians said, the barrier could be built on the Israeli side of the 1967 border.
The 59-page decision went beyond the issue of the wall to declare Israeli settlements illegal and accuse Israel of taking action to deny Palestinians their right to self-determination.
Israel gave no indication it would comply with the ruling. "As long as terror continues, Israel will have no choice but to defend its citizens," said Israeli legal adviser Daniel Taub. "If there were no terror, there would be no fence."

I for one think this is a step in the right direction. This wall outraged me, as I believe that no humans deserve to be closed in, no matter what. Sure, there may be terrorists, but most people don't support them, and most people certainly aren't terrorists. This is discrimination and prejudice, and I'm glad there's been a condemnation of the wall. Naturally the US supports it, because we're ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥s. Hopefully this will go farther than a simple condemnation, and some action will actually be taken.

Originally Posted by Ogmios22188

I for one think this is a step in the right direction. This wall outraged me, as I believe that no humans deserve to be closed in, no matter what. Sure, there may be terrorists, but most people don't support them, and most people certainly aren't terrorists. This is discrimination and prejudice, and I'm glad there's been a condemnation of the wall. Naturally the US supports it, because we're ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥s. Hopefully this will go farther than a simple condemnation, and some action will actually be taken.

This is a bit old, but I found it to be illuminating.


While I share your sentiments that 'no humans deserve to be closed it', I far more strongly support the idea that no humans deserve to be killed in terrorist attacks. These are the type of terrorists who gunned down an eight month pregnant woman and her four children.

It is not discrimination and prejudice to want to stop this bloodshed and slaughter. I completely support the right of Israel to act in its on defense.

Well, it would be different if the Israelis were isolating themselves. At least they have a right to build a fence around their borders, keeping the Palestinians out. But they're building the fence around Palestian borders, keeping them in. That's not right.