The High Court of Justice has authorized Israel to exploit the West Bank's natural resources for its own economic needs by rejecting a petition against the operation of Israeli-owned quarries in the territory...the court adopted the state's position: that no new Israeli-owned quarries should be established in the West Bank, but existing ones should be allowed to continue operating. The petition was filed two years ago by the Yesh Din organization. It argued that the 10 Israeli-owned quarries in the West Bank violate international law, which states that an occupier may not exploit an occupied territory's natural resources for its own economic benefit...[A]ttorney Michael Sfard, who represented Yesh Din, was disappointed. "Mining natural resources in occupied territory for the economic needs of the occupying state is looting," he said.