Israel is redrawing the route of its West Bank barrier closer to its borders to try to ensure Palestinians are not cut off from their lands in line with an Israeli High Court order, security sources said today.
In a move that could help Israeli Prime Minister Mr Ariel Sharon implement his Gaza pullout plan, Shimon Peres's centre-left Labour Party approved the start of formal talks with the prime minister, head of the right-wing Likud, on forming a unity government.
An Israeli security source said redrafted Defence Ministry guidelines for the barrier - a 100-metre-wide (330 feet) swathe of razor-fringed fencing and concrete walls -- would have it run "as close as possible" to the Israeli-West Bank boundary.
The World Court, the UN's top judicial arm, branded the barrier illegal and called for its removal in a non-binding opinion last week rejected by Israel and hailed by Palestinians.
Israel said it would abide only by a precedent-setting June 30th ruling by its own High Court.
The Israeli court said the government had a right to erect a barrier for security reasons on territory it considers "disputed", but ordered a 30-km (18-mile) segment moved to alleviate hardships for Palestinian villages.
"We aspire not to separate Palestinians from their lands and build agricultural (access) gates, and of course we will try not to create enclaves. However there might be cases where we have no other alternative," a Defence Ministry spokeswoman said.
In a statement, she said a team reviewing the barrier's route was working on alternatives to present to decision-makers in the military and Defence Ministry.