Ten Israeli human rights and peace groups active in the West Bank have issued a detailed statement against the separation fence, declaring that the Israeli government's defense of the barrier does not represent them.
The declaration by the ten Israeli groups will be part of the Palestinian case against the fence when the international court at The Hague hears the sides next month.
The groups include Gush Shalom, Bat Shalom, the Israel Committee Against House Demolitions, and Yesh Gvul. But Peace Now, B'Tselem, Ta'ayush and the Association for Civil Rights in Israel turned down invitations to add their names to the open letter, which was also sent to Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom.
The letter states, in part, that as peace and human rights organizations they want to make their voices heard "against the wall being built by the Israeli government in the occupied Palestinian territories. As Israeli citizens, we are disturbed by the position of the government of Israel in support of the wall, which does not reflect our views, nor does it necessarily reflect the views of Israeli public opinion.
Haaretz