Israeli groups decry army West Bank deportation rules

The Israeli military is introducing orders that human rights activists said on Sunday could make almost any Palestinian liable for expulsion from the occupied West Bank. In a statement, the army played down any notion of mass deportation, saying the orders simply amended existing Israeli regulations to assure military "judicial oversight" in the extradition of anyone "residing illegally" in the West Bank. The orders, which go into effect on Tuesday, were posted on an army website and allow for the deportation, in some cases in less than 72 hours, of an "infiltrator" -- defined as someone who does not hold an Israeli permit to reside in the West Bank. Existing regulations had defined "infiltrator" as someone who had stayed illegally in Israel after having passed through countries it considers its enemy. Ten Israeli rights groups condemned the orders, saying in a statement that the vast majority of Palestinians in the West Bank, territory Israel occupied in a 1967 war, have never been required to hold an Israeli-issued residency permit. "The military will be able to prosecute and deport any Palestinian defined as an infiltrator in stark contradiction to the Geneva Convention," the statement said.