Israel Matzav

'Disputed territory'

The Wall Street Journal has discovered the concept of disputed territory. No, of course not in Judea and Samaria. In the Western Sahara. But Eugene Kontorovich still thinks it's a hopeful sign.

While addressing the geographic issue, the Journal chooses to characterize the territory as “disputed” – following Gov. Chris Christie’s controversial description of the West Bank. The characterization is accurate – the territory is disputed between Morocco and the Sawahari Polisario government. Like the West Bank, Western Sahara was not the territory of a sovereign state when Morocco took control. Nonetheless, the U.N. Security Council called for Morocco to withdraw, and several subsequent G.A. resolutions characterizing the territory as occupied. While it gets less attention, Western Sahara is treated as occupied in the leading international law texts.

One wonders if the Journal’s characterization of the territory will encounter the derision that greeted Christie’s comments, and whether the paper will now also describe the West Bank as merely “disputed.”

Still waiting for the Washington Post to call it 'disputed' too. 

Labels: Eugene Kontorovich, Judea and Samaria, occupation, Western Sahara

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 3:30 PM