Now, "Segregated" Is the New Buzz Word

After "apartheid", we now have "segregated".

Here:

Israeli Court Rules Against Segregated Road
By ETHAN BRONNER

JERUSALEM — Israel’s Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday that a major access highway to Jerusalem running through the occupied West Bank could no longer be closed to most Palestinian traffic.

In a 2-1 decision, the court said that the military had overstepped its authority when in 2002, at the height of the second Palestinian uprising, it closed the road to non-Israeli cars. The justices gave the military five months to come up with another means of ensuring the security of Israelis that permitted broad Palestinian use of the road.

“The court was saying that you can’t reasonably find every Palestinian inhabitant to be a security risk,” noted Moshe Negbi, a legal commentator for Israel Radio, in a telephone interview. “The security considerations are legitimate but they have to find other solutions.”

...Limor Yehuda, the lawyer who argued the case for the civil rights group, said that she hoped the court would apply the ruling to all segregated roads in the West Bank in order to end the dual system there.

“We can see that as a society we are going in the wrong direction and endangering our basic values of a rule of democracy and rule of law,” she said.

...She had told the court that the rise of segregated roads in recent years approached apartheid but the chief justice, Dorit Beinish, chided her for using that term, calling it inappropriate and extreme.

...The dissenter in Tuesday’s case, Justice Edmond Levy, argued that the court should leave the situation in the hands of the military and defense ministry, and worried that five months were not enough time to create a new system.

Israeli settler leaders expressed alarm at the court’s decision, saying it would endanger Jewish travelers. They charged that the justices “never missed an opportunity to blame Jews for racism and provide Arabs with convenient conditions for the next terror attack.”

As peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians remain stalled, the threat of violence has risen slightly in recent weeks. Last week, an explosive device made of a gas canister and fireworks was found on Highway 443.

"Restricted" isn't good enough so that we don't have snide hints at racism or the American experience after the South African linkage?

Hizmeh - Qalandiya

While we Jews have our problems at the Hizmeh crossing point, seems the Pals. have found a friend to help out with their problems.

Jan McGirk, USINFO Special Correspondent, reports:-

The main highway connecting Ramallah to Jerusalem has been sadly neglected for years. The road has changed little since the days of the British Mandate for Palestine (1920-1948), and no major repairs have been undertaken to this narrow and badly potholed highway since Jordan resurfaced it before the 1967 war.

For 40 years, no government agency would take charge and repave the derelict highway because of its sensitive location. Just 14.4 kilometers from Jerusalem, this road runs past an Israeli military checkpoint with 7.5-meter concrete walls and beside the teeming Qalandiya refugee camp before continuing toward the seat of the Palestinian Authority government. For security reasons, the Israelis refused construction permits, and they were unwilling to finance the repairs themselves.

But in summer 2007, after nearly $2.5 million was allocated to the project, the bulldozers got started and the earth moved.

Two narrow lanes are being widened to four, with extra parking strips beside commercial zones to minimize obstructions. Drainage pipes and gutters are being installed. Before the winter rains bring mud and misery, this 1.6-kilometer stretch of road is scheduled to be upgraded completely and resurfaced. It will link up seamlessly with road projects paid for by German and Malaysian funds, resulting in an unprecedented smooth ride.

When workers contracted by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) started ripping up this dreaded bottleneck, most commuters appeared thrilled, even though construction work snarled the traffic even further and the delays frayed drivers’ tempers.

“It must be one of the worst roads in the Middle East,” said Haithan Hamad, who commutes daily from Bethlehem, just 22 kilometers away -- if there are no detours. “It took me nearly five hours to get home during Ramadan,” he complained. “These repairs are long overdue, believe me.”

A $2.5 million project is widening and repaving the Qalandiya Road, which carries thousands of cars daily. (Photo by Jan McGirk)“Well, I see the Americans have come to our rescue,” said Jamila Salem, a mother of twins waiting at a bus stop on the route. Car owners like her often prefer to take the bus or even a taxi to protect their private vehicles from being damaged by the rutted roadway.

Hmmm. Are you thinking what am I thinking?