Israel’s Population Authority announced yesterday that 2,000 Jordanian workers will enter Eilat from Aqaba, to be employed by Eilat’s hotel industry. Contrary to COVID-time regulations, the Jordanian workers can now go home after work and come back the next day without being required to stay and sleep in Israel. 

This decision should not only help the tourism industry, in dire need of workers, but also contribute to Israel-Jordan relations — which have been improving in recent months in diplomacy, economy and security.  

Prime Minister Yair Lapid met July 27 with Jordanian King Abdullah II at the royal palace in Amman. It was their fourth meeting in five months, but the first one since Lapid was appointed prime minister. Shortly afterward, Lapid tweeted, “Thank you, Your Majesty King Abdullah for the warm welcome today in Jordan. Strong ties between Israel and Jordan mean a more stable and prosperous region. Together, we’ll continue building on our peace for the benefit of both our people.”

In his tweet in Hebrew, Lapid noted, “We emphasized the importance of a close personal relationship to preserve regional stability and for reaching real achievements for both nations and for the entire region. We discussed the [mid-July] visit of US President Joe Biden to Israel and the region, the possibilities and opportunities that this visit brought with it, including everything related to the regional [security] architecture.”