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New Israeli military order could offer a legal framework for expelling tens of thousands of Palestinians from the occupied West Bank to the Gaza Strip or abroad, Israeli human rights groups warned on Sunday.
The orders, which go into effect Tuesday, were posted on an army website.
The order labels as an "infiltrator" any person who "does not lawfully hold a permit" to be in the West Bank. But it does not specify what Israel considers to be a "valid permit". The proscribed punishment for infiltration is expulsion or up to seven years in prison.
The rights groups said the orders are so vague and sweeping that virtually all West Bankers are potentially at risk. For example, the military does not define what permits are required to shield against deportation, the groups said.
Expulsions may take place with-in 72 hours, while appeals need only be heard within eight days, according to the order.
"We assume, based on prior experience, that the reasoning is for authorities to have an easy way to expel Palestinians from the West Bank to Gaza without the courts intervening," said Sarit Michaeli, spokeswoman of the B'tselem organization.
Since the outbreak of the second Palestinian uprising in 2000, Israel has prevented movement between besieged Gaza and the occupied West Bank. Before the travel ban, thousands of Gazans had moved to the more prosperous West Bank in search of jobs.
However, the Israeli-issued ID cards of the Gazans living in the West Bank still identify them as Gaza residents, since Israel has refused to change their addresses. This would make them vulnerable under the new orders.
"Criminals in their own homes"
Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat denounced the new measures as "an assault on ordinary Palestinians, and an affront to the most fundamental principles of human rights." He said Palestinians are being turned into criminals in their own homes.
Erekat and the Israeli activists said they believe the initial targets will include Gazans living in the West Bank and the foreign spouses of West Bank residents. Tens of thousands of people are at risk in these two groups, said the rights group HaMoked.
"The order's language is both general and ambiguous, stipulating that the term infiltrator will also be applied to Palestinian residents of Jerusalem, citizens of countries with which Israel has friendly ties (such as the United States) and Israeli citizens, whether Arab or Jewish," Israel's Haaretz newspaper said on Sunday.
"All this depends on the judgment of Israel defense forces commanders in the field."
Haaretz said the new order would probably be used first against Palestinians with Gaza ID cards and the foreign spouses of Palestinians living in the territory.
The Israeli military can issue its own orders in the occupied West Bank, but these can be overturned by the government or by Israeli courts.
PHOTO CAPTION
An Israeli soldier stands guard at the Qalandia checkpoint between Jerusalem and the West Bank city of Ramallah.
Agencies
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