Israel has approved an upgrade to fourth-generation (4G) mobile services for Palestinians in the West Bank, the Communications Ministry said on Tuesday.
The ministry said the two Palestinian mobile operators, Jawwal and Ooredoo, and the Swedish infrastructure firm Ericsson signed management agreements, which were approved by Israel, on Sunday.
Palestinian cellular providers launched high-speed 3G data services in the occupied West Bank in 2018, narrowing a technological gap with Israel after a lengthy Israeli ban on operating local 3G networks.
The ministry said its approval was part of a 2022 framework agreement between Israel and the Palestinian Authority to enable 4G and 5G cellular technologies. The agreement was delayed by the Gaza war, according to Israeli media, which also said the process to upgrade to 4G would take up to six months.
The Palestinian providers compete with Israeli cellular firms, which operate on much faster 5G mobile frequencies.
Israel is in the process of shutting down older 2G and 3G technologies and has advised the public to use devices that support 4G and 5G.
In Gaza, however, only 2G networks are available.
In 2022, one year before the beginning of the Israel-Hamas War, the West Bank Palestinians were waiting to receive the new technology that now arrives, almost three years later.
White House initiative to bring 4G connectivity to Palestinians in 2022
In 2022, the White House announced plans to launch an initiative to bring 4G connectivity to the West Bank and Gaza by 2023, as part of a broader effort to broaden Palestinian economic opportunities.
The move was a way to “[bolster] the digital economy to improve Palestinian economic growth and opportunities,” a senior US administration official said at the time. He emphasized that such an initiative would not replace the need to further pursue political development.
“It’s not an either/or,” the official added. “It does not mean that we’re doing [this initiative] and we therefore think we don’t need to find a way forward on a political horizon, things we’ve talked about before and that the president mentioned right after landing [in Israel]. But yeah, it’s a commitment to really begin the immediate steps [toward bringing 4G to] the West Bank and Gaza. That’s the goal.”
Zachy Hennessey contributed to this report.