I recently traveled to Israel with a group of 13 current and former State Attorneys General.  We had the opportunity to meet with top Israeli and Palestine Authority officials and community leaders to discuss legal and security issues.  With intense preparations for the Annapolis Summit, increased tension over Iranian nuclear capacity and serious questions about the Olmert government’s mandate, it was a fascinating time to be in Israel.

The visit proved extraordinary on many levels.  As always, the Old City of Jerusalem is an emotional uplift.  But, Israel is much more than unparalleled cultural and religious monuments and artifacts.  The sacred ground for three great world religions, it is also a western democracy on the front lines against global terrorism.  Yet, we found that in spite of very real threats and actual attacks, democratic traditions of free speech and press prevail and the rule of law protects the rights of Israelis and Palestinians alike.  In spite of suicide bombs and rocket attacks, what we saw was far from a “bunker mentality"; indeed, normal family life was flourishing.  The Cafe Hillel, site of a suicide bomb incident, was back in business in a few weeks.

National security and the prevention of terrorism are paramount concerns for Israel.  Over many years of turmoil, they have become the world’s experts.  One critical aspect of their terrorist suppression effort is the construction of a 700-kilometer security fence separating the Israeli and Palestinian areas of the West Bank.  We spent a substantial portion of our visit with Israel Defence Force personnel looking over sections of the fence.  As a security effort, it must be considered a success, nearly eliminating suicide bombings from the West Bank. 

As usual, semantics are critical.  Israelis we spoke with emphasized that this is a fence, not a wall.  Only about 4 percent of the total length consists of a high masonry structure.  For the rest, we observed miles and miles of two relatively inconspicuous wire-strand fences separated by a cleared area of 20-30 yards.  A paved road ran between the fences, with carefully swept sand on each side to show footprints.

The Government of Israel understood that a wall can be a permanent memorial to separation and a monument to violence.  Furthermore, walls are relatively easy to penetrate.  The security fence, by contrast, is a sophisticated multi-layered system using low tech (anti-vehicle ditch and swept sand) as well as high tech (sensitive cameras and electronic detection equipment elements).  Security forces can respond to penetrations in a matter of minutes using the paved road.  It is easy to see through the fence and relatively simple to relocate or add to the number of crossing locations.

A recent Los Angeles Times article, “A Fence Without Offense,” discussed how our own federal government is currently undertaking its greatest expansion to date of the barrier along the U.S.-Mexico border.  Over 70 miles were completed this year, and an unprecedented 225 miles will be constructed next year.  What form this large addition will take has not yet been made public. 

Although the goals for a barrier along the Mexican border – controlling illegal immigration and border crime – are different from those of Israel’s security fence, we should certainly look to the most successful effort of its kind when designing our own border barrier. 

Previously constructed walls on our Mexican border have been criticized for being easy to climb or tunnel under and problematic in that they actually hide activity on the other side.  Some designs have provoked outrage from Mexican officials calling them both offensive and eyesores.  Our goal should be, as the Los Angeles Times put it, a barrier that is “strong but not lethal, effective but not ugly.”

While we may disagree about immigration policy or about the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, perhaps we can agree that any barrier on our border should be effective without being hostile and maintain security without being offensive.  To this end, the Israeli security fence provides an example we should study carefully.

Terry Goddard