Jordan, PA conduct trade directly without Israeli intervention

The first shipment of vegetable crossed from Jordan directly to the occupied West Bank yesterday through the Allenby Bridge crossing, “without any Israeli intervention”, according to Palestinian Minister of Agriculture Sufiyan Sultan.

Sultan told Ma’an that the Palestinian Authority (PA)’s Ministry of Agriculture recently signed an agreement with Israel to allow the import of agricultural and animal products from Jordan by Palestinians merchants, as opposed to the previous practice of being conducted through Israeli merchants.

Sultan said that Israeli merchants would buy products from Jordan, transport the goods to the occupied West Bank, where Palestinian merchants would then buy them.

He added that meetings will soon be held with the Jordanian minister of agriculture to sign an agreement of agricultural trade between Jordan and the PA.

Sultan expressed hopes that Israel would not “obstruct” importing and exporting products between Jordan and the occupied Palestinian territory in the future, adding that increased trade between Jordan and the occupied Palestine territory would “lessen the burdens put on the Palestinians”.

He added that following Israeli and Palestinian coordination, livestock, vegetables and fruits will all soon be imported and exported between Palestine and Jordan without Israeli intervention.

Israel controls all borders surrounding the West Bank, with military checkpoints and border crossings between Jordan and the West Bank, as well as between the West Bank and Israel, due to the decades-long Israeli occupation of the territory.

In September, the PA and Israel signed a memorandum which determined that international postal services between the occupied Palestinian territory and the rest of the world would from now on be handled exclusively by the PA through the Allenby Bridge crossing between Jordan and the West Bank, without Israeli intervention.