Israeli court rules portion of apartheid wall must be rerouted
On September 4, the Israeli Supreme Court
ruled that a section of the wall it is building in the West Bank must be
rerouted.The ruling follows a two-and-a-half
year legal battle between the Israeli government and the residents of the small
Palestinian village
of Bilin.
The route of the wall in Bilin has cut
villagers off from their fields, making it impossible for them to live and work
and wiping out their local economy.The
Bilin villagers have become a source of inspiration for all Palestinians living
in the West Bank.Every Friday for the last three years, the
entire village has gathered at the wall to protest its construction, the land
grab by Israel of Palestinian lands and the Israeli policies of occupation in
the West Bank.They have been joined by Israeli peace activists and foreign supporters
and their weekly protests have been the site of violence when IDF soldiers have
tried to remove them by force, on several occasions shooting tear gas and
rubber bullets into the crowd.
Following Tuesday’s ruling, the jubilant
residents gathered in front of a throng of IDF soldiers, jeeps and tanks,
waving Palestinian flags and chanting “They demolished the Berlin wall, we want to demolish the Bilin
wall,” and “Soldiers, go home.”
Israel begun constructing its apartheid wall in
2002, despite the condemnation of the international community.The International Court of Justice in The Hague has already ruled the walls construction
illegal, a ruling which Israel
has completely ignored.
In response to the Israeli high court
ruling, an Israeli government spokesperson said Israel will need to study the
decision closely.Almost two weeks after
the ruling, no work to reroute the wall has begun.
A 2004 Israeli Supreme Court ruling on
rerouting another section of the wall has only been partially implemented.