Authorities have said that a major highway in Israel, running through the West Bank and closed to Palestinian traffic since 2002, has been partly reopened.

The BBC reported on Friday that the Israeli military banned Palestinian cars from the route in 2002 after shooting attacks killed six Israeli motorists, but Israel's Supreme Court ruled in 2009 the closure was illegal.

It has been reported that Highway 443, built in the 1980s, is a major four-lane route between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem with an estimated 40,000 Israeli drivers using the highway daily.

The army announced that Palestinian drivers still will not have access to Jerusalem or Ramallah, the West Bank's economic and administrative center.

The army was "acting in utter disregard of the spirit of the ruling," said the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, which took the issue to the Supreme Court.

ACRI said in a statement, "This creates the false impression of new regulations, genuine freedom of movement and adherence to the rule of law, though in fact no real change will occur."

The restrictions are imposed for security reasons, Israeli officials have said. (With Inputs from Agencies)