[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 150 (2004), Part 13]
[Senate]
[Pages 17034-17035]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         ISRAEL SECURITY FENCE

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, they say good fences make good neighbors.
  I do not know if that is always true, but I do know that the security 
fence Israel is building along the West Bank has been good for the 
security in the region.
  Already, the fence has resulted in a 90 percent drop in terrorism 
coming from the northern West Bank. In 2004, no Israeli nationals were 
killed or wounded by suicide bombings in areas protected by the fence, 
while 19 Israeli citizens were killed and 102 wounded by suicide 
attacks in areas without the fence.
  So, it is clear that this fence is saving innocent lives.
  Like so many others who know the region and have traveled to Israel 
and Palestine many times, I wish that a fence was not necessary. In an 
ideal world, neighbors would not need fences, and Israel and Palestine 
could have a

[[Page 17035]]

more open border where goods, services and people move freely.
  But that is not the world we live in, and that is not the position in 
which Israel finds itself. We know that terrorist organizations 
operating in the West Bank and elsewhere have sworn themselves to one 
main goal: the destruction of the State of Israel.
  These murderers target innocent civilians, women and children in 
Israeli busses, markets and cafes. Since the start of the Intifada some 
4 years ago, almost 1,000 Israelis have been killed. Every man, woman 
and child in Israel lives with the fear that a terrorist attack could 
be carried out at any time, on any given day, and in any given 
location.
  When confronted with such threats, free nations look to their 
military, their law enforcement personnel, and above all else, they 
look to the rule of law.
  A commitment to the rule of law separates free nations from 
dictatorships. It separates democracies from corrupt and dangerous 
regimes. It is what binds people together under common values, shared 
principles and an agreed framework to live in peace.
  Israel has a right to live in peace. It has a right, under law, to 
protect itself and to defend its people from attack. This is not only 
what the law allows, it is what the people are entitled to. Much of the 
United Nations Charter, in fact, is based on the inherent right to 
self-defense.
  That is why the recent International Court of Justice, ICJ, advisory 
opinion on the security fence is so wrong, and why it sets a very 
dangerous precedent. It is yet another low point for this court and for 
the UN.
  The ICJ declared itself ``not convinced'' that the barrier Israel is 
building is a security necessity. I suppose such judgments are easy to 
make when sitting in the opulence of the Hague some 2,000 miles away. 
Let the judges live along the Israeli border to the West Bank for some 
time, and then let them call the fence unnecessary.
  Beyond the wrongness of the opinion, the court should never have 
taken the case to begin with.
  The ICJ had no business interfering in the security of a sovereign 
nation. Israel's democratic institutions and its commitment to the rule 
of law make it more than able to handle issues arising from the 
construction of the fence without interference from the ICJ.
  Israel's supreme court, for example, ruled that a segment of the 
security fence must be re-routed to reduce the impact on the 
Palestinian population, even though the judges noted that ``in the 
short term, this judgment will not make the state's struggle against 
those rising up against it any easier.''
  This is what democratic nations do; they act in accordance to the 
law. They make outside interference by the ICJ not only unwelcome and 
unnecessary, but even dangerous.
  Although the ICJ opinion is non-binding, it could lead to the 
introduction of anti-Israel measures at the UN and strengthen attempts 
to isolate Israel.
  This is why some 40 nations, including the United States, submitted 
briefs to the ICJ objecting to the court's consideration of the case.
  This is why I, along with 78 other Senators, wrote the UN Secretary 
General, calling upon him to reject the ICJ's interference with 
Israel's right to self defense.
  Unfortunately, the UN's action and the ICJ's opinion is another in a 
long line of anti-Israel positions they have taken. There have been 
some 400 anti-Israel Resolutions passed at the UN since 1964, while the 
terrorist atrocities committed against the Jewish people have never 
been investigated by the UN.
  This is wrong, and it is an assault against Israeli sovereignty and 
its legal systems.
  Israel's allies must continue to speak out against this wrong-headed 
action by the ICJ. This is why Senate has introduced and I have co-
sponsored another bi-partisan resolution condemning the recent ICJ 
decision on the legality of Israel's security fence and urging no 
further action by the UN to delay or prevent the fence's construction.
  We need to pass that resolution, keep the pressure on the UN, and 
continue to protect Israel's right to self defense. The law authorizes 
it, and the people of the region deserve it.

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