Palestinians petition Hague on barrier

RAMALLAH, West Bank -- The Palestinian Authority said yesterday it had submitted a formal affidavit to the World Court supporting the body's right to rule on a huge barrier that Israel is building in the West Bank.

Israel, the United States, and Britain submitted their own affidavits by Friday's deadline, opposing hearings on the issue to be held by International Court of Justice at The Hague.

Saeb Erekat, a Palestinian Cabinet minister, said that the court had "full jurisdiction" and that the Palestinian position was submitted Thursday based on how the barrier, which cuts deep into Palestinian land, affected the Palestinians' daily lives. "The fact that it's being built in Palestinian territory is a flagrant violation of international law," he said.

Israel says completed sections of razor wire and concrete prevent suicide bombers from reaching its territory. Hundreds of Israelis have died in suicide bombings since the start of a Palestinian uprising three years ago.

The death toll from a suicide bombing of a Jerusalem bus by a Palestinian militant rose to 11 yesterday after another body was identified among the carnage, Israeli police said. It was the first such attack in Jerusalem in more than four months.

Palestinians say the barrier is an "apartheid wall" designed to loop around Jewish settlements and seal a permanent hold on land that Israel has occupied since the 1967 Mideast war.

Erekat said the Palestinian affidavit was in line with US and British calls to Palestinians to pursue diplomatic means, not violence, to achieve an independent state.

The United States filed its argument Friday, saying the World Court is not the proper forum to decide the legality of the barrier. London handed the court a statement protesting any hearing on the barrier held without Israel's agreement. Both countries previously have protested against the route of the barrier.

The tribunal begins deliberations Feb. 23 on a request from the United Nations General Assembly to rule whether Israel is legally obliged to tear down the barrier. The court has authorized the Arab League to take part in the proceedings in support of the Palestinians.

Israeli soldiers dashed into the West Bank city of Bethlehem and adjoining refugee camps before dawn for the second day after Thursday's suicide bombing.

Palestinian witnesses said jeeps carrying about 50 troops rolled into the city. They arrested five Palestinians, including three members of the Hamas militant group, before pulling out around daybreak. Israeli military sources confirmed the raid.