Postal Company halts mail distribution due to discovery of parcel bomb

The Israel Postal Company's spokeswoman on Monday announced that the public will not be able to receive mail items at post office branches throughout the country, due to a suspicious object that was uncovered in an envelope at the Migdal Haemek branch in northern Israel.

The police issued a statement that it has instructed to stop all mail delivery throughout the country due to two parcel bombs that were uncovered earlier. It was announced Monday night that distribution would resume on Tuesday.

The police's national headquarters said that following the incident it directed mail sorting offices to hold a careful inspection of mail items and to halt distribution of mail. The public was asked to remain alert while opening mail items.

Many post offices posted announcements that read: "To our customers, at this stage there will be no distribution of mail items due to a security problem."

A few hours earlier the post office in Migdal Haemek was evacuated after a woman received a suspicious package containing wires and a battery. Police sappers were called to the scene and the vicinity was closed off to pedestrians and traffic. The police requested a gag order be placed on the investigation's details.

Web surfer Dana sent a red mail to Ynet, in which she said that she was at the postal office in Rehovot when the clerk announced that they will not be distributing registered mail or packages due to security reasons. The clerk did not give any details.

Efrat Weiss and Roi Mandel contributed to the report