The road and rail map of Palestine is from 1948 and the Isreal rail map (which is unfortunately only schematic) is the current one. 1948 was the year that the British withdrew from Palestine at the expiry of their mandate and after fighting between Jews and Arabs the area was divided into Isreal and the Palestinian territories.
Israeli Railways operates just over 1,000 route km of lines in standard 1,435 mm gauge. An additional 250 km is planned in the present decade (isn't it good to see a country going the opposite way to NZ?) Unlike the roads, Israeli trains have left hand running on double tracks, perhaps a legacy of British days.
All lines are diesel operated, but electrification is planned for 420 km of the system in 25 kV AC.
Talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority in 2004 raised the possibility of reviving the old line from the Gaza Strip to Tulkarm and/or building a new line from Gaza to Tarkumia (near Hebron) with the aim of securely transporting people and goods between Gaza and the West Bank through Israeli territory as well as for transporting cargo to and from the Israeli port of Ashdod destined to the Palestinian Authority. Another proposed line would involve the revival of the famous former Hejaz railway branch from Afula to Jenin.
Connections with Lebanon, Syria and Egypt are defunct.
2 comments:
"1948 was the year that the British withdrew from Palestine at the expiry of their mandate and after fighting between Jews and Arabs the area was divided into Isreal and the Palestinian territories."
???
Are you kidding me? Holy cow, it's not that difficult to look things up on the internet.
There were no "Palestinian territories" after the 1948/9 war. The area still under the British Mandate in 1948 was divided among Israel, Transjordan (which thereupon changed its name to Jordan) and Egypt. No borders were drawn, only ceasefire lines. What is today called "Palestinian territories" was captured by Israel from Jordan and Egypt in 1967.
"it's not that difficult to look things up on the internet"-
It depends on whose propaganda you want to believe.
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