Israel's exploitation of mines in Occupied Territories

An Israeli human rights group, Yesh Din, accuses Israel of breaking international law by exploiting the occupied territory's resources for its own gain.

Yesh Din cites military documents which show nine million of the 12 million tonnes of rock and gravel mined in the West Bank each year are sold in Israel - and says Israel is "addicted to the exploitation".

It says its High Court petition addresses "the illegal practice of brutal economic exploitation of a conquered territory to serve the exclusive economic needs of the occupying power".

Long-term Israeli construction plans show the authorities intend to rely on the continued use of materials taken from the West Bank over the next 30 years, says the group, leaving the territory "empty of natural resources".