Groups protest security barrier

The barrier is to keep Palestinian suicide bombers out, Israel says.
JERUSALEM (AP) -- The Supreme Court heard petitions from two Israeli human-rights groups against the West Bank separation barrier today, a day after the government said it would change the route to minimize hardship for Palestinians.
The rights groups argue that any construction on occupied land is illegal and that the barrier violates human rights by disrupting lives of thousands of Palestinians.
"We accept the right of the state to surround itself with barbed wire if it wishes, but only on its own territory," Michael Sfarad, a layer for the Center for the Defense of the Individual, said ahead of the hearing.
Israel insists that the barrier is necessary to keep out Palestinian suicide bombers, who have killed hundreds during three years of violence. Palestinians say it is a land grab aimed at preventing them from creating a state.
Sharon's larger plan
Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is building the barrier as part of a larger plan to unilaterally separate Israelis and Palestinians.
Sharon has said he will carry out other parts of his plan, including the removal of most Israeli settlements in the Gaza Strip, if peace efforts fail in the coming months.
Sharon, who has come under criticism both from the Palestinians and within his own government for his disengagement plan, canceled all events on his schedule today after being diagnosed with kidney stones in the urinary tract, his office said.
A spokesman said Sharon, 75, was to undergo treatment later today and was expected back at work Wednesday.
Palestinians have harshly criticized the security barrier, saying a settlement must be reached through negotiations.
A senior Palestinian official said today that Yasser Arafat's government is considering declaring an independent state if Israel tries to impose a boundary on the Palestinians. The state would include the West Bank, Gaza and east Jerusalem.
The official, Yasser Abed Rabbo, said the proposal was raised at a meeting of Palestinian leaders over the weekend. Other participants said the proposal was only raised informally.
An aide to Sharon, Zalman Shoval, said that Israel could react by annexing disputed land if the Palestinians declare a state unilaterally.
Palestinians' view
The Palestinians say that if Israel wants a barrier, it should be built on territory that Israel held before seizing the West Bank in the 1967 Mideast war.
The route of the barrier, which is about one-quarter built, dips into the West Bank and encircles several Palestinian towns and villages. It has cut tens of thousands of Palestinians off from farmland, schools and social services. Later this month, the International Court of Justice in The Hague, Netherlands will hear another challenge to the legality of the barrier. The case was referred by the U.N. General Assembly with the backing of the Palestinians.
With the court challenges looming, Israeli officials have said this week that they plan to change the route of the barrier to ease the burden on the Palestinians.