<br/>The Israeli High Court of Justice has criticised the government over its settlement-building policy in Palestinian territories.<br/> Supreme Court President Dorit Beinisch and Justice Ayala Procaccia lashed out at officials over a request to authorize retroactively the construction of a sewage purification plant in the West Bank settlement of Ofra, which human rights activists have previously claimed was built mostly on privately owned Palestinian land. <br/> According to Israeli media Haaretz, the court ordered the state to explain within 90 days why it is refraining from enforcing the demolition orders for the waste purification facility. In May 2009, Palestinian residents with help from human rights group Yesh Din, had petitioned the High Court of Justice against the construction of a waste purification facility built illegally on their land. <br/> Israeli settlement activities in West Bank and East Jerusalem have been the major roadblock on Israeli-Palestinian direct talks.<br/>