Jordan’s Deputy Prime Minister Awad Khleifat and PA Civilian Affairs Minister Jamil Tarifi are expected to hold talks Monday to discuss recent “temporary” measures restricting the entry of Palestinians from the West Bank and Gaza Strip, a Palestinian official said Sunday, quoted by the Jordan Times newspaper.
Palestinian Ambassador to Jordan Omar Khatib did not rule out that the two officials would discuss other topics during their one-day meeting.
Khatib declined to give further details.
The meeting was scheduled one week after Jordan’s Ministry of Interior announced a set of measures that curb the flow of Palestinians holding “green cards” into the kingdom via the King Hussein Bridge.
The ministry statement, issued last week, described the move as a “temporary” one to prevent the Israeli government from achieving its objectives, namely to force Palestinians to leave their homeland as a result of the confrontations between the Palestinians and the Israeli Army.
It stipulated that Palestinians holding “green cards” should obtain permission from the ministry to visit the kingdom.
Palestinians holding “yellow cards,” those seeking medical treatment, students, businessmen, merchants, PA officials visiting the kingdom or in transit to other countries, and Jordanian passport holders were exempted from the new regulations.
Recent news reports indicate that the PA has expressed dissatisfaction with the measures, despite its implicit approval for the Jordanian move.
A government official said Jordan had asked the PA to issue a statement, similar to that issued by the interior ministry last week, showing its support for the decision, which has received criticism from Palestinians traveling to and from Jordan, said the paper.
The official, who asked not to be named, told the paper that that Jordan was “unhappy” with the PA reaction to the new measures, despite the fact they were reached following contacts between the two sides.
Palestinians are using the 34-year-old King Hussein Bridge, which links Jordan with the Palestinian occupied territories, and the Rafah crossing point with Egypt, to travel abroad.
Official figures show that 324,704 Palestinians have entered Jordan since the outbreak of the nine-month-old uprising, compared to 301,171 who returned to the Palestinian territories.
The figures include only those holding yellow and green cards, and Jordanian passport holders – Albawaba.com
