TEL AVIV, January 1, 2008 (WAFA) - Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said on Tuesday that the roadblocks spread throughout the West Bank will not be removed, reported local daily Ha'aretz on its website.

Barak was quoted as saying that "the methods of roadblocks have proven themselves" and will not be removed for Israel's security.

According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Jerusalem, Israel's network of military checkpoints and road barriers in the West Bank have formed a sophisticated system of controls that disrupts all aspects of Palestinian life.

These physical obstacles are carving up the West Bank into separate parts, with travel between them becoming more and more difficult.