PA upset as 'VIP' travelers breeze over Allenby Bridge
The Palestinian Authority is accusing Israel of intentionally stifling the flow of travelers through a border crossing between the West Bank and Jordan to promote a new and expensive VIP service.
RAMALLAH, West Bank — There was an unprecedented travel crisis at the King Hussein (Allenby) Bridge during the month of July, when the number of travelers coming to and from the West Bank reached 247,000, according to the Palestinian Authority’s General Administration of Crossings and Borders.
The high traffic on the border crossing between the West Bank and Jordan prompted Mohammed al-Hassan, 44, to take advantage of the VIP service at the crossing despite its exorbitant cost of $120-$150 per person. On July 24, Hassan was coming from the United Arab Emirates to the West Bank to spend his annual leave with his wife and three children.
Hassan, who works as an accountant in Dubai, told Al-Monitor, “I had to take the VIP service, which allows direct access from the King Hussein Bridge on the Jordanian side to the Karameh crossing center on the Palestinian side, despite its high cost, to avoid the wait and fatigue at the crossing, with the hot weather and overcrowding.”
The VIP service was planned to start during the first half of May, but was delayed for operational reasons. The service was the result of an agreement between the Palestinian Nejmeh taxi service in Jerusalem, an Israeli taxi company and the Jordanian Sahm taxi service in coordination with the Israel Port Authority. The PA has nothing to do with the service. The Palestinian side of the crossing is excluded from the service, a source at the General Administration of Crossings and Borders told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity.
