Amnesty says Israel should tear down wall

By Jeremy Lovell

LONDON (Reuters) - The barrier Israel is building in the occupied West Bank has caused deaths and suffering among Palestinians and should be torn down, the Amnesty International rights group said in a report on Monday.

Israel's Justice Ministry called the report "one-sided, immoral, and ... full of factual and legal falsehoods, including rare mentions of Palestinian terror".

The 50-page report, coinciding with the eve of the 40th anniversary of the 1967 Six Day War, broke no new ground but cautioned that continued construction of the project risked prolonging the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

"Israel's ... legitimate security concerns are no excuse for blatant violations of international law, nor the mistreatment of thousands of Palestinians in a massive programme of collective punishment," said Amnesty's British director Kate Allen.

Israel has said the barrier, deemed illegal by the International Court of Justice because it runs through occupied territory, has stopped Palestinian suicide bombers from reaching its cities and could be removed under a future peace agreement.

"The report does not address Israel's right for self defence and to its legitimate security needs, but mentions it in a minor way without giving those concerns their true weight," the Justice Ministry said in a statement issued in Jerusalem.

The barrier, mostly razor wire-tipped fences and shorter sections of concrete walls, already stretches for 220 miles (350 km) and is planned to cover 450 miles (720 km) when finished.

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