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Holding on tight to the frequencies
By Amira Hass

The air is one escape route from the roadblocks and the separation regime that Israel imposes on the Palestinians. But Israel catches up with them even in the air. Israel does not allocate cellular frequencies to the Palestinians that answer their modern technological, economic, social and personal needs. More precisely, Israel refuses to coordinate with the Palestinians so they can use the cellcom frequencies they should have according to the International Telecommunications Union.

The Communications Ministry claims there is no coordination because we are not speaking to the Hamas government. A convenient excuse, but flawed, because even before the Hamas government arose, Palestinian requests to coordinate additional frequencies went unanswered. The Palestinian cellphone company Jawwal received the frequencies it should have had only in 1999, two years after it was founded. In March this year, Jawwal got a competitor: Al-Wataniya. The Kuwaiti company Wataniya International won the Palestinian Authority tender at the end of 2006. Ownership is to be shared between the international company, the Palestinian Investment Fund (PIF) and the public. A professional British management team was appointed, 500 jobs were promised, but no frequencies were allocated.

The importance of the air is reflected in the following data: Jawwal has about 800,000 subscribers, about 60 percent of the Palestinian cellphone market. Economists estimate that Israeli companies have about a 40-percent share of the market. The approximately 4 million Palestinians have more than 1.3 million cellphones. Some people have two - a Palestinian one and an Israeli one. The Palestinians come in third in the Arab world in the number of people connected to the fast data transmission system ADSL. They are also frequent users of video-conferencing services at their parliament - the Palestinian Legislative Council - at government ministries and at private businesses.
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That is how they overcome the severing of Gaza from the West Bank and the roadblocks between Jenin and Ramallah. Families who live a few dozen kilometers apart and who have not seen each other for five years or more have learned how to make do with phones, Skype, and e-mails. No wonder Paltel (the Palestinian telecoms company, of which Jawwal is a subsidiary) is the most profitable Palestinian firm.

Dozens of requests for operating permits for Internet and information technology companies lie on the desk of the deputy Palestinian communications minister, Suleiman Zuhairi, who has been working at the ministry since its establishment in 1994. He cannot approve them because of the lack of frequencies.

The geopolitical reality of the multiplied "borders" between the Palestinian enclaves, on the one hand, and area C (of full Israeli control) and the settlements - which comprise 60 percent of the West Bank - requires maximum coordination between Israel and the PA. As long as Israel does not agree to coordinate the distribution and use of frequencies, it will be impossible to install proper equipment in C areas. That is the reason that even the development of landline infrastructure is limited. No private company will risk installing equipment in C areas lest the Civil Administration's supervisors and the Israel Defense Forces bulldozers pounce on it and destroy it.

Although the Israeli Communications Ministry denies any connection with this matter, the non-allocation of frequencies to Palestinians serves the Israeli companies that compete with Jawwal on terms favorable to them. (They do not pay taxes to the PA, although the cellular phones are being used in the Palestinian territories.)

The non-allocation of frequencies is another front in the economic war Israel is waging against the Palestinians. It means a direct loss of income, of jobs, and the blocking of the desire to develop economic niches, which by making use of the air, could overcome the earthen roadblocks and apartheid roads.
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  1.   We Should Destroy Communication Network. 10:06  |  Terry 31/05/07
  2.   Frequencies 10:17  |  bish 31/05/07
  3.   amira 10:35  |  eva 31/05/07
  4.   It is an economic siege 10:42  |  Jessie Coehn 31/05/07
  5.   Good article. 10:56  |  cfs 31/05/07
  6.   Holding on tight to the frequencies 10:59  |  David Pacifici 31/05/07
  7.   Amira Give me a Call 11:00  |  FOX 31/05/07
  8.   Re: #1 :We Should Destroy Communication Network 11:17  |  Guy From NYC 31/05/07
  9.   Ignore Israeli frequencies 11:18  |  John 31/05/07
  10.   how dare the zionists interfere 11:35  |  Leon Rosgarten 31/05/07
  11.   and so ummmm... 11:55  |  eric 31/05/07
  12.   terry #1 12:04  |  isaac 31/05/07
  13.   to terry 12:05  |  strongbow 31/05/07
  14.   boo hoo 12:20  |  don 31/05/07
  15.   If we expel them then there will be no need to ban frequencies! 12:27  |  Yael 31/05/07
  16.   Arab colonists should be removed from our country 12:33  |  Jo 31/05/07
  17.   Amira`s conspiracy theories 12:42  |  Nik Miller 31/05/07
  18.   Boycott Israel? 12:44  |  Nik Miller 31/05/07
  19.   Who cares about cell phones, the Palestinians are bombing us. 13:09  |  Steven 31/05/07
  20.   Appalling 13:28  |  Marilyn 31/05/07
  21.   Amira school of journalism 13:28  |  Meni 31/05/07
  22.   Holding on tight to the frequencies 13:37  |  Marlene 31/05/07
  23.   Broken Telephone 14:00  |  Ronnie Wolman 31/05/07
  24.   question HOW DO IDENTIFY AZIONIST IN THE STREET ?? 14:02  |  paul harris 31/05/07
  25.   Go Marlene! Let`s boycott technology! 14:18  |  Shlomi 31/05/07
  26.   BOOHOO-OCCUPIED FAMILIES ONLY GET 80 CHANNELS & 2AIR CONDITIONERS 14:26  |  Buncha Kooks 31/05/07
  27.   A M I R A the angry Jewess 14:31  |  GABE !!!!!! 31/05/07
  28.   oh my amira tell it to the rocket launchers war is war get used t 14:40  |  ralph 31/05/07
  29.   Gabe come on we`ve all got cellphones in canada 14:53  |  Ronnie Wolman 31/05/07
  30.   Marilyn (second attempt) 14:55  |  Nik Miller 31/05/07
  31.   Holding on tight to the freequencies 14:56  |  Rosa 31/05/07
  32.   Marilyn may I ask your opinion 15:13  |  Mordechai 31/05/07
  33.   to PAUL HARRIS - TELL US WHERE YOU LIVE... 15:18  |  David 31/05/07
  34.   Shlomi the dummy 15:19  |  Mordechai 31/05/07
  35.   Dear Amira 15:24  |  Yussuf 31/05/07
  36.   #30 for Rosa - a good post 15:26  |  David 31/05/07
  37.   David vs Paul Harris 15:30  |  Mordechai 31/05/07
  38.   to Terry #1 15:33  |  Clickfan 31/05/07
  39.   David I am not a right winger... 15:34  |  Ronnie Wolman 31/05/07
  40.   @10, leon happy to see you back. bravo!!!!! 15:36  |  vladimir 31/05/07
  41.   Amira Hass on frequencies 15:37  |  Nora 31/05/07
  42.   #33 DAVID DEVOID OF COMMON SENSE MAKES A STATEMENT 15:38  |  paul harris 31/05/07
  43.   A bucket of tears 15:38  |  Yakov 31/05/07
  44.   Loss of jobs, income and economic holds 15:41  |  Yaakov Sullivan 31/05/07
  45.   Aparteid State 15:43  |  Clickfan 31/05/07
  46.   David Give him TWO on the chin!!!! 15:45  |  Ronnie Wolman 31/05/07
  47.   To Terry /Sometimes I tell to my friends abroad... 16:06  |  Lena 31/05/07
  48.   Ronnie Wolman #29 16:07  |  GABE1 31/05/07
  49.   Paul Harris 16:12  |  GABE 1 31/05/07
  50.   Amira`s Hamas Manifesto 16:14  |  Robert 31/05/07
  51.   Hass: serving Hamas from the outside 16:15  |  Rachel 31/05/07
  52.   Haas waging a war on Haaretz readers 16:24  |  Sal 31/05/07
  53.   Robert and others bristle at the truth #50 16:32  |  Yaakov Sullivan 31/05/07
  54.   An example why Israel wants to maintain control 16:33  |  Ibrahim 31/05/07
  55.   to MORDECHAI and RONNIE - we too suffer from terrorism 16:36  |  David 31/05/07
  56.   Haas a hero under a burka-not from this century 16:43  |  A writer 31/05/07
  57.   Ronnie Wolman #29 16:43  |  GABE! 31/05/07
  58.   Analysis? Not really, 16:44  |  Jacob Blues 31/05/07
  59.   The next article of Amira Hass 16:47  |  Jacques Kurdian 31/05/07
  60.   David in London #55 16:50  |  GABE! 31/05/07
  61.   Yes Clickfan, Palestinians are ready to blow up over cell phones 16:53  |  Jacob Blues 31/05/07
  62.   To be expected.... 16:53  |  Natallie Durson 31/05/07
  63.   David: Standing Tall 17:01  |  Ronnie Wolman 31/05/07
  64.   Yaacov of course, ignores 7 years of war 17:02  |  Jacob Blues 31/05/07
  65.   Sorry Terry, but it appears you`re going to have to wait in line 17:07  |  Jacob Blues 31/05/07
  66.   Gabe: Assault and Batteries not included 17:07  |  Ronnie Wolman 31/05/07
  67.   No frequencies so sorry 17:30  |  Twogunz 31/05/07
  68.   haas has nothing more important to have a critic 17:34  |  vladimir 31/05/07
  69.   Ronnie on being "miserable" 17:45  |  Ibrahim 31/05/07
  70.   #63 A mautre and thoughtful post 17:52  |  David 31/05/07
  71.   Jacob Blues and his timelines #64 17:53  |  Yaakov Sullivan 31/05/07
  72.   #60 for Gabe - have you tried counselling? 17:55  |  David 31/05/07
  73.