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Palestinians optimistic as Jordan border crossing set to open 24/7

Israel has agreed to open the Allenby (King Hussein) border crossing into Jordan around the clock following bilateral negotiations with the Palestinians.

Israeli soldiers stand guard near the entrance to Allenby Bridge, a crossing point between Jordan and the occupied West Bank, near the West Bank town of Jericho March 10, 2014. Israeli soldiers shot and killed a Palestinian on Monday at the crossing point, Israeli and Palestinian security officials said. The Israeli military said the man had tried to seize a soldier's gun at the Allenby bridge, which spans the Jordan River, and that troops had then shot him. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun (WEST BANK - Tags: POLITICS
Israeli soldiers stand guard near the entrance to Allenby Bridge, a crossing point between Jordan and the occupied West Bank, near the town of Jericho, West Bank, March 10, 2014. — REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

RAMALLAH, West Bank — During the high season extending from June 20 until the month of October, Palestinians in the West Bank will be allowed to travel to Jordan around the clock on weekdays. On Fridays and Saturdays, passage will be restricted to three hours from 7:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. through the crossing known as the Allenby Bridge and the King Hussein of Jordan Bridge, which links the Palestinian territories to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. Following this trial period and once further preparations are complete, travel will be allowed around the clock all year long, starting in early 2018. The agreement to open the crossing was concluded in coordination between the Palestinian, Israeli and Jordanian authorities.

This development comes as part of an Israeli economic aid package provided to the Palestinian Authority. Gen. Yoav Mordechai, who heads Israel's Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories, announced June 1 over Facebook that he had informed Palestinian Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah and Minister of Civil Affairs Hussein al-Sheikh at a meeting held May 31 in the presence of Israeli Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon of Israel's approval of a number of economic concessions to the Palestinians, including the opening of the Israeli Allenby crossing for 24 hours a day.

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