Update October 1999: Palestine Territories

The most dominant promotional activities in the IS were, undoubtedly, the inauguration of the first Internet training center within a refugee camp and the first cellular phone service in Palestine which was introduced by PALTEL. Not to be omitted, of course, was the augmentation of Internet cafes.

1. Projects

1. In late June, the first Palestinian cellular phone service was inaugurated by President Arafat signaling a new communication era. The new GSM technology system is called "Al-Jawwal" and offers to the Palestinians their own service. Paltel bought lines from Bezeq and upgraded them by adding fiber optic cables. Paltel aims to offer higher-speed communications and Internet access by the end of next year.

2. AMIN is a project of Internews Middle East that aims at supporting Arabic-speaking journalists and media personnel. AMIN's focus is on putting Arabic language reports and news stories on the World Wide Web and training journalists in accessing Arabic media and other resources on the Internet.

3. In late July, the first Internet training Center in a refugee camp in Dheisheh near Bethlehem, signaled the launch of the Across Border Project. The Project was initiated in January 1999 by the Birzeit University Information Technology Unit and aims to bring Internet technology into Palestinian refugee camps across the Middle East. The first bilingual website was ready one month later completely designed by a group of camp residents, including on-line news, oral history and stories from Palestinians refugees giving a meeting place and a window onto the world. The Across Borders Project also aims to facilitate the connection of refugees with each other.

4. The Ministry of Civil Affairs is to be connected to a Central National Communications Network.

5. The Construction of Microwave and Fiber Optics Network for Government Security Forces Project is on tender - status.

2. Surveys

A preliminary study is on-going about the development of a Government Computer Center.

3. Expertise

An Information technology and communication center was founded in Al-Quds Open University in order to help the university become self-sufficient in technology by the identification of university's needs in the area of information technology and communication, the computerization of university's production, the establishment of an electronic information bank and the linking of all the QOU centers.