British MPs sign anti- separation wall petition

As many as 168 British MPs, including 124 Labour Party members, signed a petition against the Israeli separation wall now being built in the Palestinian territories.

The lawmakers called on British Prime Minister Tony Blair to denounce Israel's construction of the 700-km-long wall, which snakes through vast swathes of Palestinian lands and pre-sets the borders of a future Palestinian state.

Among the signatories were former Foreign Secretary Robin Cook, former International Development Secretary Claire Short and famed anti-Iraq war activist George Galloway.

Meanwhile, Jews demonstrated Monday at Trafalgar Square in central London in support of the separation wall Israel is building in the Palestinian West Bank.

A spokeswoman for the Israeli embassy claimed that the wall was a security measure and could be pulled down if an agreement was reached with what she called a reliable Palestinian partner.