Quds City, Aug 10, SPA -- The Israeli army has authorized the confiscation of cars driven by Palestinians who try to bypass Israeli checkpoints around West Bank cities under siege, a military official said Tuesday, legalizing a practice that has been harshly criticized by Palestinians. For several years, soldiers have confiscated cars or car keys to punish Palestinians who ignored orders to stop, although the army has said the practice was illegal and denied it took place. Other methods of punishment include slashing tires and sometimes also smashing windshields. At one checkpoint near the West Bank city of Nablus, car keys of confiscated vehicles were recently collected in a box, and soldiers manning the roadblock said Palestinians were instructed to pick up their cars several days later. A military official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Maj. Gen. Moshe Kaplinski, the top West Bank commander, signed an order this week legalizing the confiscation of cars.
