 |  | [RAMALLAH, 9 July 2009] - Today is the 5th anniversary of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) Advisory Opinion regarding the construction of the Wall in the West Bank, which found that the Wall, permit systems, and land confiscation in the occupied Palestinian territory (OPT) violate international law. Despite this finding Israel is continuing to build the Wall illegally. Since the Advisory Opinion of the ICJ in 2004 Israel has added an additional 200km to the Wall. Israel’s repeatedly claims that its conduct is justified by “security needs.” However, the ICJ stated that the international law violations stemming from the route of the Wall cannot be justified by military requirements or protecting public welfare.
The security needs of Israel and self-defence remain the main justification for all Israeli violations of international law and have recently mistakenly been used to justify Israeli aggression in the Gaza Strip during Operation Cast Lead.
The building of the Wall accompanied by increasingly restrictive Israeli military control over the Palestinian people through the use of barricades, checkpoints, gates, and permit systems, inhibit Palestinians from leading their normal daily lives. The Wall and permit system restrict the freedom of movement of thousands of Palestinians as they are separated from their schools, workplaces, and deprived of their human rights.
The Wall and settlements, spread throughout the West Bank, antagonise the Palestinian population and create tension among Israelis. The Wall and the settlements also entail the presence of a large number of settlers and soldiers inside the OPT. According to DCI-Palestine documentation a large portion of child rights violations in the West Bank, including the right to life and liberty, during the past two years occurred in villages and towns that have been affected by the construction of the Wall, bypass roads, or villages located near illegal Israeli settlements. In 2008, a notable number of child injuries and fatalities occurred during demonstrations against the Wall, drawing increased attention and scrutiny on Israeli forces. Israeli Border Police, who typically guard the areas along the Wall, have fired rubber-coated steel bullets and sometimes live ammunition, as well as tear gas canisters and sound bombs at demonstrators, placing children at significant risk of injury. In 2008, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) documented at least 98 child injuries during anti-Wall demonstrations in the villages of Ni’lin and Bil’in (Ramallah Governorate). The vast majority of injuries, 83 per cent, were the result of rubber-coated steel bullets while the remaining 17 per cent was the result of being hit by tear gas canisters. In January this year, units of the Israeli army entered the village of Tura al-Gharbiya, near Jenin and rounded up a number of children, accusing them of throwing stones at the Wall. The village is located West of Jenin, in the north of the West Bank, and the Wall next to the village was built on land illegally seized from its inhabitants. At least six children aged 12-15 were arrested and interrogated in the middle of the night. They were sentenced to a one-month suspended prison term and NIS750 each for allegedly throwing stones at the Wall. [Read DCI-Palestine's press release]
The Wall is one of the major recent contributions to the settler movement. By building the Wall Israel confiscated large portions of Palestinian land. The 5th anniversary of the ICJ ruling coincides with the Israeli government’s plan to confiscate 139,000 dunums of land from Palestinians east of Bethlehem to the Dead Sea. This confiscation will allow Israel to maintain control of the Dead Sea. In addition, the settlements are continuously expanding and new outposts are being established.
The political consequences of the Wall are the most serious because the route of the Wall seeks to impose borders of an Israeli State before any peace agreement is reached. In addition to preventing the establishment of a Palestinian state, 85 per cent of the wall is built inside the West Bank and this has serious social and economic consequences to Palestinians. Among these, hundreds of Palestinian families have been expelled from their homes and land, whilst some Palestinian villages and towns have been isolated in between the Wall and the Green Line. According to OCHA, about 35,000 Palestinians are living in these isolated enclaves. In addition, around 10,000 Palestinians need special permits to move in and out of these enclaves.
DCI-Palestine views Israel’s continued construction of the Wall and other violations of international law as stemming from the international community’s failure to adequately pressure Israel to cease construction of the Wall on Palestinian land, or to call for the dismantling of portions that have already been built, whilst ensuring compensation for those who were affected by the construction. Detailing and criticising the humanitarian impact of the Wall is not enough, the international community must hold Israel accountable. | 
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