ISRAEL: Israel's highest court has rejected a bid by Jewish settlers to overturn legislation underpinning Israel's planned withdrawal from Gaza, clearing the last major legal hurdle in the way of a pull-out in August.
A high court panel voted 10-1 to leave largely intact a compensation package, already approved by the Israeli parliament, for the 9,000 settlers earmarked for evacuation.
Groups of settlers seeking to block any withdrawal from occupied land had filed 12 petitions calling for the "disengagement" law to be invalidated or significantly rewritten on the grounds it violated their human rights.
The court's rejection of the settlers' arguments means prime minister Ariel Sharon, who has already overcome all legislative hurdles to implementing the pull-out, should be able to push ahead without fear of further legal obstacles.
In another blow to opponents of the withdrawal, a former chief rabbi of Israel, Mordechai Eliyahu, called on soldiers to obey orders to remove settlers and advised evacuees to use passive resistance when the security forces come to the door.
The ruling could encourage more settlers to leave voluntarily and accept government compensation ranging from $100,000 to $400,000 per family instead of joining hardline brethren threatening to resist evacuation.
Mr Sharon's far-right opponents however have vowed to keep up efforts to derail removal of all 21 settlements in the Gaza Strip and four of 120 enclaves in the West Bank, set to begin in mid-August.