State orders West Bank fence rerouted in favor of Palestinians

[Scurrilous]

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"Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Defense Minister Ehud Barak have decided to reroute the West Bank separation fence in an area near Jerusalem, to enure that the barrier does not encroach on Palestinian land.

The State Prosecutor on Thursday notified the High Court of the government's decision, which demands the fence near Ma'aleh Adumim be moved westward, to allow 4,000 dunams of Palestinian land to remain untouched.

The decision was made in response to two petitions against the planned fence route.

A government statement said the new route represented a significant change in plans for the barrier to the east."

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1014078.html


ANALYSIS / Fence relocation is acknowledgment that route is politically motivated

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"Who said Ehud Olmert and Ehud Barak don't talk? The State Prosecutor's Office announced Thursday that the prime minister and defense minister "recently decided on a significant change" in the separation fence's route near Ma'aleh Adumim.

The two agreed to "return" about 4,000 dunams (1,000 acres), which is about half the area Israel wanted to take from the West Bank. The other half of the land Olmert of Kadima and Barak of Labor decided to "annex" to Israel to bring another small settlement inside the fence. The two have joined Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi, who announced recently that the fence's route is a political question and not necessarily a security matter."

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