Bedouin village to go

– Israel’s top court cleared the way yesterday for the demolition of a Bedouin village in the occupied West Bank whose fate has become a focus of Palestinian protests and international concern.

The Supreme Court, in a decision released by a court spokesperson, rejected petitions against the demolition of Khan al-Ahmar and said a temporary injunction that had put a hold on the move would lapse in a week.

Around 180 Bedouins, raising sheep and goats, live in tin and wood shacks in Khan al-Ahmar. It is outside Jerusalem between two Israeli settlements and was built without Israeli permits, which Palestinians say are impossible to obtain.

Israel said it plans to relocate the residents to an area about 12km away, near the Palestinian village of Abu Dis. – Reuters

Jerusalem