Israel's Foreign Ministry has instructed its diplomats to refuse to accept any official mail that uses “problematic terminology” such as the “state of Palestine.”
The instructions come ahead of Thursday's scheduled vote in the United Nations General Assembly on the Palestinians' request to elevate their status to non-member observer state, Ynet reported.
Other problematic terms include “occupied Palestine,” “occupied Jerusalem” and “occupied territories.” Palestinian Authority territories is an acceptable term, according to Ynet, which cited Foreign Ministry employee Galia Levanon.
All the terms have appeared in official letters from international organizations and foreign ministries, according to the report.
Letters containing the unacceptable terminology should be returned to the sender with a request that it be revised, according to Ynet.
Meanwhile, the Israeli media is reporting that Israeli will not pull out of the agreements of the Oslo Accords if the request for upgraded U.N. status is passed, as had been threatened. Other possible responses include calling in the Palestinians' debts, according to the Times of Israel.
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