- JERUSALEM (AFP) - Israeli
Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom said Wednesday construction of its West
Bank separation barrier would continue despite criticism from US President
George W. Bush that it was prejudicing final status negotiations.
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- In a speech in London, Bush said that "Israel should
... not prejudice final negotiations with the placement of walls and fences"
in reference to the barrier which at times cuts deep into Palestinian territory.
-
- But Shalom told army radio that the barrier was merely
designed to prevent infiltrations onto Israeli territory by Palestinian
extremists intent on carrying out attacks and that building work would
continue.
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- "We have reached a clear and unequivocal decision
to build this fence, to prevent the extremists from attacking us,"
he told army radio.
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- "We are doing everything we can to put up this fence
that will prevent infiltrations," he added while on a trip to Austria.
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- The United Nations General Assembly overwhelmingly called
last month for a halt to the project but Israel made clear it had no intention
of paying heed to a non-binding resolution from an institution it regards
a hostile.
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- Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat interpreted
Bush's comments as an appeal to halt construction and urged the president
to "force Israel to immediately stop the construction of the apartheid
wall."
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- Palestinians regard the barrier as an attempt to pre-empt
the borders of their future state and seize some of their most fertile
land.
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