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State to move fence near J'lem westward By Tomer Zarchin Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Defense Minister Ehud Barak have decided to reroute the West Bank separation fence in an area near Jerusalem, to minimize how much the barrier encroaches on Palestinian land. The state prosecutor yesterday notified the High Court of a state decision to move the fence near Ma'aleh Adumim westward, allowing 4,000 dunams of Palestinian land to remain untouched. Advertisement The state's announcement came in the wake of two petitions against the planned route by the villages of Abu Dis and Suahra and their residents. Gilad Shirman of the State Prosecutor's Office said the exact new route could not be presented yet because the state had not issued expropriation orders for the land. However, Shirman said the new route constitutes "a substantial change". Petitioners claimed that the original fence route harmed the rights of residents disproportionately compared to its aims - including the settlement of Keidar on the "Israeli" side of the fence. In addition, they argued the route would amplify impact on the local population and the Palestinian population in the West Bank. The petitions claimed that 41 percent of Abu Dis lands would be on the other side of the fence, inaccessible for future use by Abu Dis residents for housing, industry or commerce. Maaleh Adumim Mayor Benny Kashriel said yesterday in response that Olmert, about to leave office, has no authority to make dramatic decisions regarding the fence route. Kashriel said city hall would take the lobby publicly as well as use legal measures to get the decision changed. The city plans to appeal to the High Court against the decision and lobby cabinet ministers and lawmakers, including Kadima members. Kashriel stated: "The planned route change would damage the security buffer between our neighborhoods and future Palestinian communities, would harm the connection between Keidar and Maaleh Adumim and damage the approved Maaleh Adumim zoning plan by 'choking' construction." Attorney Shlomo Lekker said the petitioners would not withdraw their motions in response to the state's announcement. Lekker said the state's announcement revealed that despite claims by the defense establishment, the current fence route is designed to annex territory to Jerusalem and Maaleh Adumim, and the decisions were political and not security-oriented in nature. "The claims raised by the state that there is no alternative to the fence route for security reasons were exposed as nonsense," Lekker said. He said there is no reason to withdraw the petition because the new declared fence route still leaves Keidar inside the fence, therefore biting into Palestinian territory, particularly Abu Dis. "Keidar is a quiet area security-wise and the well-being of its residents could be ensured with a fence around the community without including it on the west side of the fence." The Defense Ministry said yesterday that part of the fence near Maaleh Adumim was already built before the changes were decided on. A few kilometers of fence will now be moved to the new route, however most of the relevant stretch was not built yet. The ministry could not estimate yesterday when construction would begin on the new stretch and noted that the decision would be part of budget allocations for next year, despite the urgent nature of the security need. Yuval Azoulay contributed to this report. Bookmark to del.icio.us   Nail in the coffin? Haniyeh: Arrival of blockade-busting boats spells end of Gaza siege. Operation Shalit Islamic Jihad urges Palestinian groups to kidnap Israeli soldiers.

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