Israel Suspends Postal Services to Gaza

Israeli authorities Thursday suspended postal services to the besieged Gaza Strip via the Erez crossing after Israeli forces intercepted shipments of products that they believed could be used for military purposes, according to officials at the Palestinian liaison office, According to Palestinian local agencies.

The officials said that Israeli authorities suspended the postal service into the Gaza Strip in response to finding the products in postal shipments entering the small Palestinian enclave.

Israeli media reported that Israeli authorities confiscated drones, components of weapons, and scuba diving equipment from mail shipments earlier in the day.

Director of Public Relations and Media at the Ministry of Communications in Gaza Samir Hamto confirmed reports of the suspension while rejecting Israel’s claims of finding equipment for military use.

“The Israeli authorities make [these] claims in order to tighten the siege on the Gaza Strip,” he said, adding that the suspension would only harm the people of Gaza.

The majority of the more than 1.8 million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip are sealed inside the coastal enclave due to a near-decade long military blockade imposed by Israel and upheld by Egypt on the southern border.