LONDON, March 12, 2007 (WAFA) - Amnesty International called Israeli official authorities to take concrete steps to address serious concerns raised by the UN expert body on racial discrimination.

In a press release issued Monday, Amnesty International urged the Israeli government and the Knesset to take on board the criticisms of the Committee which underline how far, in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT), Israel has set up a discriminatory system which is restricting and damaging the lives of Palestinians.

Amnesty International made this call following publication of the concluding observations of the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, the treaty body established to oversee states parties' compliance with the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD).

"The Committee recognized that Israel has legitimate security concerns but criticised the raft of measures - checkpoints, closures, permits and restricted roads - used by the Israeli authorities to restrict movement by Palestinians in the OPT and their systematic and discriminatory nature. " the organization said.

It also called on the Israeli authorities immediately to cease construction of the "fence/wall" in the OPT, for the structure erected so far to be dismantled and for those affected by its construction to receive reparation. It stressed that Israeli settlements in the OPT are illegal under international law.

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