Israel postpones debate over West Bank barrier route

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon postponed a debate with his inner cabinet on Sunday over possible changes to the route of Israel's controversial West Bank barrier ahead of a world court hearing.
Sharon told cabinet members the route would not be discussed during the session, aimed at forging Israel's strategy at an International Court of Justice hearing over the barrier next month.
"We are not discussing a change in the route of the fence, and there will be no change as a result of Palestinian or United Nations' demands, including those from the court," his office quoted him as saying.
The legality of the barrier, which has drawn international condemnation, is to be debated by the Hague-based ICJ on February 23 following an Arab-backed request by the UN General Assembly. Israel claims the barrier, which cuts deep into the occupied West Bank in certain areas, is aimed at preventing infiltration's by Palestinian attackers.
However, the Palestinians see it as a land-grab and a bid to pre-empt the borders of a future Palestinian state.
Sharon said any new discussion on the route would take place "only as a result of internal Israeli deliberations" although he did not dismiss possible changes out of hand.
"It is possible that additional thought is needed to allow for the possibility of changing the route, in order to reduce the number of mishaps in operating the fence without harming security," he said. Referring to counsel he received last week from acting Attorney General Edna Arbel which warned of the legal difficulties of defending the barrier's route, Sharon said he would study the issues seriously.
Media reports had said Justice Minister Tommy Lapid would present the cabinet with a new route which would shorten the barrier by 200 kilometres (about 125 miles) and ensure it closely follows the Green Line separating Israel from the West Bank.
Such a plan would save an estimated 500 million dollars and enable Israel to better make its case at the ICJ, they said.
Also on Sunday, thousands of Palestinian workers returned to work in Israel after the army lifted a four-day closure slapped on the impoverished Gaza Strip after a suicide bomber killed four Israelis last week.