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Israel to Dismantle Part of West Bank Barrier -Report
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JERUSALEM (Reuters) -
Israel will dismantle a section of
its West Bank barrier on the eve of World Court hearings on the
controversial project, an Israeli television station reported
on Friday.
A defense ministry spokesperson was unavailable for
comment.
Channel 10 said Israel would tear down an 5-mile fenced
portion of the partially completed barrier north of the West
Bank village of Zeita on Sunday.
The report said two barriers had encircled the village --
home to about 7,000 Palestinians -- and that Israel would tear
down the eastern fence, allowing them more freedom of movement
into the West Bank.
The demolition, the report said, will cost Israel $8
million or about $1 million per kilometer.
The route of the barrier has come under international
criticism, including by Israel's main ally, the United States.
Israel has said in the past it would consider changing the
route to ease the plight of Palestinians who are cut off from
their fields, schools and medical services.
The International Court of Justice in the Hague opens
hearings on Monday at the request of the U.N. General Assembly
for a non-binding opinion on whether Israel is legally obliged
to tear down the barrier.
Any ruling by the court would be non-binding, but Israel
fears a finding against it would be so influential as to spawn
U.N. Security Council action against it.
Palestinians say the barrier -- a network of metal fences
and concrete walls -- is a bid to annex land they want for a
state. Israel calls it a security fence that is meant to keep
out suicide bombers and has thwarted dozens of attacks.
The barrier is planned to extend for some 452 miles. The
Defense Ministry says a first section of 93 miles was completed
in July and work continues on the second and third sections.
Its route approximates the "Green Line" that was the
boundary before the 1967 Middle East war. But Israel plans to
loop parts of the barrier around major Jewish settlements deep
inside the West Bank.
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