Israel rights groups criticise W.Bank town policy

JERUSALEM, May 14 (Reuters) Two Israeli human rights groups accused Israel on Monday of imposing restrictions that have effectively expelled thousands of Palestinians from homes and businesses in the West Bank city of Hebron.

The city, holy to both Muslims and Jews, is a frequent flashpoint for violence, often as a result of tensions between Jewish settlers and Palestinians living unwillingly side-by-side.

In a report, the Israel Civil Rights Association and the Betselem rights group said Israel had effectively expropriated Hebron's centre from Palestinians in an effort to protect the settlers in the second-largest city in the occupied West Bank.

About 500 settlers, who see living in Hebron as a biblical birthright, are housed in several tiny enclaves built since 1980 in the heart of the city. Hebron is also home to 115,000 Palestinians.

The 120-page report accused Israeli soldiers of committing acts of ''routine and violent harassment'' against Palestinians, such as frequent curfews, denial of access to key streets and the setting up of security posts in their homes.

Troops also ''as a rule refrain from protecting the Palestinian residents from attacks by settlers'', it said.

''These measures have led over the years to the expulsion of thousands of Palestinian residents and merchants from the centre of the city,'' the report said.

It said many Palestinians had been left with ''no option but to get up and leave''.

More than 40 per cent of Palestinian homes in Hebron's centre were now vacant, said the report.

Seventy-seven per cent of Palestinian shops and other businesses had been shut, nearly a quarter of them due to Israeli military orders, it said.

''Israeli actions, which are based on a policy preferring the settlers' interests, have turned Hebron's city centre into a ghost town,'' Sarit Michaeli, a Betselem spokeswoman, said in a statement summing up the report.

''Israel contends that it is impossible to ensure the safety of the settlers without separating Palestinians and Israelis in the city, and without infringing on the basic rights of the Palestinian residents,'' said Michaeli.

The Israeli military said measures it has taken in Hebron have been aimed at confronting worsening security threats posed by Palestinian militants against Israeli civilians and soldiers.

It said the army has recently taken steps to help Palestinians reopen businesses shut during periods of violence, and to enforce the law for settlers and Palestinians alike.

''The situation confronted by the military commander in Hebron is sensitive and complicated,'' a statement said. ''The military commander has to take steps, as stated, purely for security reasons ... and to protect human life.'' REUTERS AB SSC1425