Channels

A different kind of inbox
Illustration: Index Open

Palestinians to get snail mail via Jordan

Israel, Palestinian Authority exploring ways to allow West Bank residents to receive regional, international postal services through Amman. Communications Ministry says agreement in close

The Palestinian Authority will soon be getting its postal services from Jordan instead of from the Israel Postal Service, Ynet learned Monday.

 

The Communications Ministry and the corresponding PA bureau are reportedly close to finalizing an agreement which would allow the Palestinians to receive mail from other Arab countries.

 

Arab nations will not use the Israel Postal Service, which currently supplies the PA with international mail services. Israel is interested in signing the agreement in order to ease communications between Palestinian and their families abroad.

 

The Palestinian snail mail conundrum was discussed during the 2008 Universal Postal Congress in Geneva, but the derived policy change was postponed due to the Israel's January offensive in Gaza Strip.

 

Yigal Levi, the Communications Ministry's director of postal services, met with his Palestinian counterpart Mahmood Diwan several days ago and the two agreed to form a joint committee aimed at finding a solution which would allow the Palestinian Authority to use Jordanian postal services. The two are schedule to meet again in a few weeks.

 

According to an agreement signed between Israel and the Palestinian Authority in 1995, the PA is entitled to use Jordanian mail services, subject to a commercial agreement.

 

Any such agreement, however, would exclude mail sent between Israel and the Palestinian Authority.

 

"The Palestinian Authority has never been able to receive international mail before. Any mail addressed to it would have to pass through Israel first, meaning Palestinians were unable to receive mail from Arab counties," levy told Ynet.

 

"Israel is willing to take this step as part of its efforts to ease the restrictions places on the Palestinians in the Judea and Samaria. We are currently exploring the operational measures needed to sign this agreement with the Palestinian and with Jordan."

 


פרסום ראשון: 07.13.09, 13:57
 new comment
Warning:
This will delete your current comment