After nearly a decade Palestinian mail finally allowed into West Bank
Postal workers in the West Bank are now struggling to sort through ten tonnes
Palestinian postal workers are struggling to sort through nearly 10 tonnes of mail previously blocked by Israel and finally delivered as the result of a one-shot deal.
Some of the parcels date back to 2010 and include everything from letters to wheelchairs, according to the French news agency AFP, which visited the sorting centre in Jericho.
AFP reported that Palestinian Telecommunications Minister Allam Mousa blamed the backlog on Israel, which he accused of dragging its feet in implementing a postal service agreement with Ramallah. In response, the Israelis said an agreement would be implemented but declined to go into details.
One Palestinian official told AFP that he believed some of the packages were held up for both security and administrative reasons, and it would take weeks to sort through it all.
Israel’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories said the delivery of the packages followed the signing of an agreement “about a year ago” that had not yet been implemented, characterising it as a confidence-building measure.
In late 2016, the Israelis and Palestinians signed a memorandum of understanding to improve postal services between the two entities, according to the Palestinian Maan News Agency reported, with the Palestinian Authority handling international mail directly by way of the Allenby Bridge crossing between Israel and Jordan. Previously, Israel controlled all Palestinian mail despite an agreement signed in 2008.
Listen to the latest episode of the Jewish Views Podcast!
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
