A tale of two fences, one real, one contemplated

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NBC News correspondents and producers around the globe share their insight on news events.

Bombings in Israel down sharply
The Israeli version has proved quite effective as a security measure.

Since construction began, the number of suicide bombings in Israel has dropped significantly, from 41 in 2002 to five last year, according to Associated Press figures. And although other factors have been at work, including an informal cease-fire by Palestinian militants in 2005, Israeli officials say the barrier has been the key to maintaining calm.

“This is a direct result of the security fence,” said national police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld. “It’s very, very difficult for people to come and go as they please.”

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The quiet, however, has come with a price.

Because it juts into the West Bank, the fence has caused severe hardship for Palestinians, who accuse Israel of carrying out a land grab. Many Palestinians have been cut off from farms, hindered from traveling, and blocked from reaching jobs, hospitals and other services inside Israel. Palestinians refer to the barrier as the “apartheid wall.”

Global condemnation
The fence also has drawn international condemnation. In a 2004 advisory ruling, the World Court declared it illegal and urged Israel to tear it down. Israeli court challenges have forced officials to change the route.

For years, Israel claimed the barrier was strictly a temporary measure. But the new prime minister, Ehud Olmert, now says the barrier — expected to swallow roughly 7 percent to 9 percent of the West Bank — will be the basis for Israel’s final border. That plan has received a cool reception abroad.

Even if the barrier is finished, there is no guarantee the border will be airtight. Israeli security officials say militant groups are constantly searching for ways to sneak into the country. Thousands of laborers continue to enter in areas where construction is not complete or by traveling in cars with Israeli license plates.

‘The army's job’
“There is always a possibility that they can hide in a vehicle. It’s the army’s job to make sure they don’t do this,” said Danny Rothschild, head of the Council for Peace and Security, an advisory body of 1,200 former military officers.

Such attempts are only likely to increase as the situation in the Palestinian territories — hit hard by an economic boycott against the Hamas-led government — becomes more desperate, said Mohammed Ishtayeh, head of the Palestinian Economic Council for Development and Reconstruction.

“They aren’t willing to suffer, so they will take risks,” he said.

Mexicans offered similar reactions to Wednesday’s U.S. Senate decision to back a border fence, which already has been endorsed by the House. Migrant workers desperate for work said they would simply find new ways to enter the United States.

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