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AMMAN — A panel discussion aimed at addressing the rise of rumours and hate speech in Jordanian society was held on Saturday under the theme, “Enhancing Public Awareness in the Face of Rumours and Hate Speech.”

Organised by the Young Women’s Foundation for Political Empowerment, the session featured Minister of Government Communication and official spokesperson Mohammad Momani, alongside representatives from civil society organisations and media institutions.

Momani described the growing spread of misinformation and hate speech as a “global challenge” that requires a comprehensive national response. While reaffirming the government’s commitment to freedom of expression as a pillar of national security, he stressed the need for a responsible and balanced exercise of this right.

“Constructive and objective criticism is essential for improving public policy,” he said. “However, unsubstantiated scepticism and misinformation are unacceptable.”

The minister noted that in the digital age, where information circulates rapidly and widely, governments must remain open to critique but vigilant against deliberate disinformation. He warned of organised campaigns aimed at eroding public trust and undermining state institutions.

To confront these challenges, Momani called for legislative measures to criminalise the intentional spread of rumours and hate speech—while carefully safeguarding freedom of expression and protecting against discrimination based on origin or national affiliation.

He also emphasised the importance of strengthening political and media literacy among youth to help them critically evaluate information. In this context, he highlighted the role of social media influencers and the use of cybersecurity tools in disseminating accurate information and combating online disinformation.

“Spreading rumours is often a calculated attempt to distort political discourse and damage public confidence in state institutions,” Momani said, underscoring the need for collaboration between traditional and digital media. He reaffirmed that mainstream media remains the most reliable source of verified information.

The minister also called for enhanced cooperation between the government and civil society to promote responsible media practices, combat hate speech, and ensure the credibility of public communication.

Participants in the session echoed the need to rebuild trust between citizens and official media. They urged journalists to prioritise accuracy over speed and encouraged public figures and analysts to support the national narrative.

The discussion further underscored the importance of empowering youth to verify information, expanding media literacy programmes in local communities, and working with English-language journalists to effectively communicate national perspectives abroad.

Recommendations included integrating media education into school curricula, creating rapid-response mechanisms to address misinformation, and supporting youth-led initiatives and positive influencers to foster public trust in official media.

-       Hassan urges intensified efforts to achieve ‘immediate’, ‘lasting’ ceasefire in Gaza, ensure delivery of sufficient humanitarian aid

-       Prime minister says solution to region’s woes lies in realising legitimate rights of Palestinians

-       He welcomes US decision to lift of sanctions on Syria, reiterating support for Syrian people in their recovery efforts

-       Hassan reaffirms Jordan’s support for Lebanon’s efforts to activate its state institutions

-       Premier calls for regional solidarity to resolve ongoing crises, including in Yemen, Libya, Sudan 

AMMAN — Prime Minister Jafar Hassan on Saturday stressed that Jordan will continue to uphold its historic role in safeguarding Islamic and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem under the Hashemite custodianship.

Delivering Jordan’s address on behalf of His Majesty King Abdullah at the Arab Summit in Baghdad, Hassan emphasised that ongoing violations and assaults in Jerusalem and the West Bank, including land confiscations and settlement expansion, will not guarantee peace and security for Israel. He warned that continued Israeli violations would only deepen instability and prolong the conflict.

 “The future of the region, its security and stability, depends on a just and comprehensive resolution to the Palestinian cause,” Hassan said. “That means restoring the full rights of the Palestinian people, paramount of which is their right to an independent and sovereign state of their own, living in peace and security side by side with Israel, based on the two-state solution.”

He also said that no cause or state can exist without a steadfast people, hailing the perseverance of Palestinians in the face of decades-long occupation and injustice.

“The steadfastness of the Palestinian people shows us daily, despite all challenges, their unwavering determination to realise their legitimate rights. Their steadfastness is a model and a defining feature of this period.”

Hassan called for intensified efforts to support the Palestinian people, end ongoing violations, and the worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza. He urged international cooperation to support a comprehensive reconstruction plan for the besieged territory.

“All efforts must come together to achieve an immediate and lasting ceasefire and to ensure the urgent delivery of sufficient humanitarian aid to Gaza,” he said.

He pledged continued support for Syria’s sovereignty, stability, reconstruction efforts and called for facilitating the voluntary return of displaced Syrians to help rebuild their homeland.

The primer also welcomed the US decision to lift of sanctions on Syria, voicing the Kingdom’s commitment to standing with the Syrian people in their recovery efforts.

He also expressed support for Lebanon’s sovereignty and stability and for efforts to activate its state institutions.

Hassan called for regional solidarity to resolve ongoing crises, including the conflicts in Yemen, Libya, and Sudan, emphasising the need for peaceful solutions based on agreed frameworks.

He also affirmed Jordan’s dedication to building a secure, prosperous future for the next generations, despite the challenges ahead, and thanked Iraq for hosting the summit and its efforts to achieve development and meet its people’s aspirations.

 The Jordanian delegation at the Arab Summit conference meetings included, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi, Jordan’s ambassador in Cairo and permanent representative to the Arab League, and Jordan’s ambassador in Baghdad.

AMMAN — Health Minister Firas Hawari on Thursday said that spending on Jordan’s health sector reached JD2.67 billion, accounting for 7.7 per cent of the Kingdom’s GDP.

Speaking at a ceremony to launch the National Health Accounts (2020–2022) and present the findings of a study on government spending during the COVID-19 pandemic, Hawari noted that Jordan's health expenditure surpasses the international average, as well as that of upper-middle-income and Arab countries, where health spending typically stands at around 6 per cent of GDP, according to the Jordan News Agency, Petra.

Hawari said the spending reflects the priorities of Jordan’s health system, with 30 per cent allocated to pharmaceuticals and 40 per cent directed toward primary healthcare services.

The total government expenditure on managing the COVID-19 pandemic between 2020 and 2022 stood at JD597 million, the minister added.

As part of ongoing reforms, Hawari announced the launch of the Health Financing Reform and Universal Health Coverage Plan (2024–2030). The plan includes establishing a new insurance fund for uninsured members of the Social Security Corporation to gradually expand coverage to the entire population.

"The initial phase will focus on primary and preventive healthcare services, which are most effective in reducing disease burden and healthcare costs."

Also speaking at the event, President of the Jordanian National Centre for Epidemics and Communicable Diseases Adel Bilbeisi presented a detailed overview of Jordan's experience during the COVID-19 pandemic.

He highlighted the preventive measures, infection and mortality statistics, the five waves of the virus, and vaccination data, including the number of administered doses and other key indicators.

AMMAN — The Arab League on Thursday condemned Israel for defying international legal obligations, as the occupying power, including United Nations Security Council resolutions demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and the unconditional entry of humanitarian aid.

The League also criticised Israel’s refusal to comply with provisional measures issued by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to prevent the crime of genocide.

In a statement marking the 77th anniversary of the Nakba, the Arab League’s General Secretariat condemned and criminalised the ongoing Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people in Gaza and the West Bank, which has persisted for over 585 days.

The Secretariat said that the Nakba, a major tragedy in human history, was initiated by Zionist militias in 1948 and continues to this day, as the Palestinian people face extermination, killing, displacement, and forced expulsion.

"These acts have turned millions of Palestinians into refugees both within and outside their homeland, a form of oppression and injustice rarely witnessed by any people in centuries, the statement said.

The statement emphasised the critical role of the international justice system and human rights organisations, international, regional, and local, as well as civil society institutions, in ensuring accountability and securing justice for the Palestinian people.

It also reiterated the Palestinian right to self-determination and called for the establishment of an independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital, based on the pre-1967 borders.

The League underscored that this year’s commemoration comes amid a devastating war in Gaza, ongoing for more than 19 months, which has left over 200,000 people dead, injured, or missing, the majority of them women and children.

It also pointed to the mass displacement of Gaza’s population, estimated at two million, and the systematic destruction of civilian infrastructure, including homes, hospitals, and schools.

The statement also condemned the continued blockade of humanitarian aid, resulting in acute shortages of food, water, and medicine, and described these actions as war crimes of unprecedented magnitude in the region.

The Arab League also denounced the attacks on UN facilities, medical centres, and the targeted killing of healthcare workers, journalists, and aid personnel, calling such acts blatant violations of humanitarian, moral, and legal norms.

It also urged the international community to uphold its responsibilities and push for an immediate end to what it called a genocidal war and campaign of ethnic cleansing in Gaza.

Also on Thursday, the Arab Parliament urged the international community, the UN Security Council, and international and regional parliaments to uphold their moral, humanitarian, and legal obligations by taking immediate action to stop what it described as an ongoing genocide against the Palestinian people and to ensure international protection for them.

Speaker of the Arab Parliament Mohammed bin Ahmed Yamahi said, "This year’s commemoration comes as Palestinians endure a new catastrophe no less horrific or criminal than that of 1948."

He pointed to the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip, now in its 19th month, during which more than 53,000 people have been killed and over 120,000 injured, the majority of them women and children.

He also highlighted the intensifying Israeli assaults on refugee camps in the northern West Bank, which he said aim to undermine the right of return and erase the Palestinian refugee cause.

Al Yamahi emphasised that the Nakba is not a chapter of the past but a persistent and escalating tragedy, renewed in ever more brutal forms under the shadow of international silence.

This reality, he said, demands urgent and decisive international intervention to end the Israeli occupation and its daily violations of international law and UN resolutions.

He reaffirmed the Arab Parliament’s full support for the Palestinian people across all diplomatic and parliamentary arenas, stressing the need to uphold their inalienable rights, foremost among them the right of return, freedom, and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital.

AMMAN — Chairman of the Civil Aviation Regulatory Commission Haitham Misto announced on Thursday that flights operated by Jordanian airlines to Mitiga Airport in Tripoli have been suspended until further notice.

Misto told Al Mamlaka TV that the decision was taken to safeguard the safety and security of Jordanian airlines.

He said that the suspension had been implemented several days ago, coinciding with the outbreak of security incidents in Tripoli. He also noted that Libyan flights from Mitiga Airport to Jordan have also been stopped for the same reasons.

He stressed that the suspension is subject to developments on the ground and ongoing evaluation.

Once the situation returns to an acceptable level of safety and security for civil aviation, flights will be resumed.

Misto added that flights between Jordan and Benina International Airport in Benghazi are still operating and have not been affected.

 Jordan operates three weekly passenger flights and one weekly cargo flight to Mitiga Airport in Tripoli, he added.

Tripoli has witnessed an escalation in violence between forces affiliated with the Government of National Unity and the Special Deterrence Force, which has led to the declaration of a state of emergency, the suspension of classes and exams, and the rerouting of flights from Mitiga Airport to Misrata Airport.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, the Foreign Ministry expressed deep concern over the unfolding situation in Libya.

The ministry spokesperson, Sufian Qudah, reaffirmed Jordan’s full support for the security and stability of Libya.

He urged an immediate de-escalation in the capital, Tripoli and called for the preservation of Libya’s unity and national resources.

Qudah also confirmed that all Jordanian nationals residing or present in Libya are safe, while advising them to exercise caution and avoid areas of conflict.

AMMAN — Public Security Department (PSD) Director Maj. Gen. Obaidallah Maaytah on Thursday met with the Director of the Palestinian Civil Defence (PCD), Maj. Gen. Akram Thawabta and his accompanying delegation.

The meeting focused on boosting cooperation in training, technical capacity building, and the exchange of expertise, according to the Jordan News Agency, Petra.

Maaytah reiterated the PSD’s commitment to continued cooperation with the PCD, in line with Royal directives that stress supporting the Palestinian people and empowering their national institutions, particularly in the field of civil protection.

He highlighted that enhancing strategic partnerships with counterpart agencies in brotherly nations is a key priority for the PSD, as it contributes to the advancement of security and civil protection systems and promotes community safety both locally and regionally.

Thawabta expressed appreciation for the PSD’s ongoing support across all areas of civil defence and protection. He also underscored the importance of sustained cooperation between the two sides, noting its positive impact on boosting the capabilities and effectiveness of PCD personnel.