Nazir Majally, Asharq Al-Awsat

OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, 9 February 2004 — Israel has decided to shorten the route of its West Bank wall in hopes of easing hardships on the Palestinians and receiving US support for the contentious structure, a senior aide to Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said yesterday.

The announcement came ahead of two legal challenges to the barrier. Today, the Israeli Supreme Court is to hear a case brought by a civil rights group that is arguing the wall infringes on human rights.

Later this month, the world court in the Netherlands is to open hearings into the wall’s legality. The UN General Assembly, with the backing of the Palestinians, has asked the court for a nonbinding, advisory opinion on the matter.

Israel says it is building the wall to block Palestinian suicide bombers. But Palestinians condemn it as a land grab and violation of international law. Many countries, including the United States, have objected to the wall’s route, which dips deep into the West Bank in some areas.

Zalman Shoval, an adviser to Sharon, said the changes are meant to garner US support for the wall. Israel is concerned that after the world court case, the issue could reach the UN Security Council, Shoval said.

The United States, which can veto council resolutions, could help protect Israel in the council, Shoval said. “We want as much as possible to draw a line with the Americans,” he said.

In other developments, Israeli forces yesterday killed a fugitive from the radical Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine in the Rafah refugee camp in the Gaza Strip.

About 1,500 Palestinians attended the funeral of Aziz Shami, the Islamic Jihad leader killed in an Israeli missile strike on Saturday. Hoisting black banners and Palestinian flags, scores of armed men from Islamic Jihad’s military wing vowed to avenge the death of their Gaza City leader.

The violence came days after Sharon said he would evacuate 17 of 21 Gaza Strip settlements as well as some West Bank settlements. Sharon has said he would carry out his plan, aimed at reducing friction with the Palestinians, if peace efforts fail in the coming months.

In Cairo, Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qorei said he expects a long-delayed summit with Sharon before the end of the month. The meeting would be a critical step to restarting peace talks, which have been stalled for months. Hamas leader Abdel Aziz Rantissi said yesterday that Sharon’s proposed withdrawal from Gaza is the result of Palestinian resistance. “Sharon’s step is a declaration of defeat,” he said.

Israeli security sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Israel plans to step up military pressure on the Palestinians in the near future to ensure the evacuation plan is not perceived as a defeat. They did not say whether the latest attacks over the weekend were part of this strategy.