Jawwal faces strong competition from the four Israeli operators even though it is the only mobile phone company authorised by the Palestinian Authority to operate in Gaza and the West Bank.

“Although there are some Israeli companies working illegally in the Palestinian market, in the current condition we have to offer the maximum help to our subscribers by providing the best prices, even if it is with Israeli operators,” says Ammar Aker, Jchief executive at awwal .

The 1.1m Jawwal customers will be able to make calls at lower prices to other users on the Cellcom, Mirs, Orange and Pelephone networks.

Jawwal will face its first authorised competition in March when Qtel, the Qatari operator, launches a mobile phone business in the West Bank.