Israel's Zaka private emergency service said it was sending
the charred skeleton of Bus 19, in which 11 people were killed
on Jan. 29 when a Palestinian policeman blew himself up, as
grim evidence of how Israel has "suffered from terror."
The bus, taken in pieces to Ben-Gurion airport on a flatbed
truck, was to be flown out Wednesday and displayed outside the
World Court in The Hague (news - web sites) during next week's hearings on the
legality of the barrier Israel is building in the West Bank.
Israel says the network of concrete and razor wire, which
snakes into Palestinian territory in some places, is meant to
stop suicide bombers. Palestinians condemn it as a grab for
land they want for a state.
Israel has decided not to attend hearings set to open on
Monday, saying the tribunal lacks jurisdiction, but Israelis
are still planning to make their case in the court of world
opinion.
In addition to the bus display, a team of Israeli officials
will be on hand in The Hague to deal with the press, and
pro-Israel rallies were being planned.
"Because of the court case in The Hague that is against
Israel, we want to show the world what we go through, that
children and innocent people are getting killed for nothing,"
said Yossi Landau, a volunteer for the Zaka emergency service.
Zaka spokesman Zelig Feiner said his organization, made up of
ultra-Orthodox Jewish volunteers who retrieve body parts at
bomb sites for religious burial, had received permission from
city officials in The Hague to display the burned-out bus.
Israel questions the court's right to rule on the barrier
and is backed in this position by the United States and
European Union (news - web sites) -- though they criticize a route that takes it
deep into the West Bank around Jewish settlements.
Israel sent a position paper to the court ahead of the
hearings, but decided not to participate further.
The Palestinian Authority (news - web sites), which brought the case with
backing from the U.N. General Assembly, intends to present
legal arguments, and pro-Palestinian groups are planning
rallies.
