Greece. Israeli "no service" marks on mail to Arab states: 25 X 1949 airmail cover from ATHENS to BETHLEHEM "PALESTINE", franked 1300Dra & tied by 2 strikes of local postmark; posted 9 days after end of Greek civil war: here checked by censor & "exchange control", which sealed cover but mis-routed via ISRAEL where front-stamped 8-11-1949 (WEST) JERUSALEM arrival, censored & sealed by Gladstone Type-4b with unlisted "Yud 1008" + "PAS DE SERVICE VIA ISRAEL" instructional marking handstamp K-Type-II.2 on earliest known date of use & mandate era "RETURN TO" instructional marking on front; cover returned & resent, now correctly routed: backstamped 19 FEB 50 AMMAN transit + next day EAST JERUSALEM & BETHLEHEM arrival; Israeli instructional marking crossed off. Rare: less than 30 covers known marked by T-II.2.

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Israel. Israeli mail sent to Egypt: 15 V 1953 surface mailed registered commercial cover on Bank Leumi stationary from HAIFA to IBADAN Nigeria, meter franked 1.55Pr per SU-3a postage period rate (95Ag letter + 60Ag registered fee) & tied by Hebrew "registered" instructional marking + Israeli "Ayin" censor handstamp on front & backstamped twice same day HAIFA-3 dispatch; backstamped 21 JU 53 registered IBADAN arrival, but as unclaimed, marked such on front & sent back AUG. 53 - here misrouted via EGYPT where backstamped 26 SE 53 CAIRO transit + opened/resealed by censor & tied by censor handstamp (possibly rare oval K-Type4) + manuscript marked "no service with Israel" & returned to sender (Nigeria); resent to Israel & backstamped 10-12-1953 HAIFA-19 arrival. Only one such example known via Nigeria; rare instance of Israeli mail in Egypt. Cover opened for exhibition display. Of note: Israel and Nigeria established relations only in 1960 - 7 years after this letter was posted.

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United States. Iraqi postal boycott of Israel: 6 JUN 1949 airmail cover on business stationary from NEW YORK to REHOVOT, franked 25c per period air mail rate & tied by local machine cancel; mis-routed via IRAQ where backstamped 11 JUN 49 BAGHDAD arrival + manuscript marked on front "No Postal Communication w Palestine Returned to Sender" & returned. This is the earliest known example of Israel-bound mail received in Iraq: very rare as Iraq has had no postal relations with Israel since 1948 & so few articles have ever been mis-routed there (no Iraqi instructional marking handstamp exists as erroniously-routed mail volume is negligible). Some staple holes & vertical folds. Rare instance of mail misrouted via Arab countries not in the immediate proximity to Israel - only 2 such known routed via Iraq. Of note: the vertically aligned 6-digit printed number on lower-left front of cover may be a censor mark, a more advanced version of a similar type (Type-8A2) used in BEIRUT during WWII, and as Israeli War of Independence just ended (March 1949), this may be a carry-over. If confirmed, an interesting clue as to this cover's mis-routing.

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