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AMMAN — Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi met with United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres on Friday to discuss efforts to stop the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip and address the ensuing humanitarian crisis.

They also underscored the critical importance of protecting the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), emphasising its vital, irreplaceable role in supporting Palestinian refugees, according to the Jordan News Agency, Petra.

Safadi and Guterres called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and the swift delivery of humanitarian aid into the region.

The discussions also focused on enhancing cooperation between Jordan and UN agencies to provide essential humanitarian assistance to Gaza.

Safadi and Guterres reviewed developments in Syria, with Safadi reiterating the necessity of reaching a political solution that upholds Syria's unity, security, stability, and the well-being of its citizens.

AMMAN — The situation on the Jaber border crossing into Syria was stable "so far", an official said on Saturday, amid rising violence on the Syrian side of the border.

Director general of the Jordanian-Syrian free zone Irfan Khasawneh said on Saturday that operations in the zone remained normal and stable despite ongoing developments on the Syrian side of the border.

Khasawneh also noted that warehouses at the Jaber-Nasib free zone currently hold goods equivalent to the capacity of 300 trucks, owned by investors of various nationalities, including Jordanians, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. 

He also said that 124 Syrian-registered trucks have been stuck at the crossing since last Thursday due to the closure of the crossing from the Syrian side.

Jordan closed its Jaber crossing with Syria on Friday but kept it partially open to receive Jordanians returning from Syria to the Kingdom. 

AMMAN — Jordan on Friday closed its Jaber border crossing with Syria, amid rising escalation of violence in the northern neighbour.

Citing security concerns, Interior Minister Mazen Faraya decided to close the Jaber crossing, the only border post with Syria, which has been witnessing renewed fighting between the Syrian army and extremists.

The Kingdom closed the Ramtha border crossing with Syria long time ago following the outbreak of the conflict in the northern neighbour in 2011 and, with the closure of Jaber crossing on Friday, the more than 370 kilometres of borders between the two countries are now officially sealed off. 

Faraya said that the Jaber border crossing will be partially operating to receive Jordanians returning from Syria, while no passenger and cargo movement will be allowed from Jordan northwards into Syria, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. 

Armed groups have been reported to gain more territory in Syria and advance southwards, amid reports about extremist-led fighters firing at Syria’s Nassib border crossing with Jordan.

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah returned to Jordan on Friday, after a private visit that was followed by a working visit to Belgium and the United States, according to a Royal Court statement.

AMMAN — Prime Minister Jafar Hassan on Thursday directed ministers to expedite the implementation of the government’s policy statement, which was endorsed by Parliament on Wednesday, emphasising the need for a detailed executive programme to be finalised by January.

During the Cabinet session, the prime minister underlined the importance of fostering constructive engagement with the Lower House, parliamentary blocs, and political parties, according to the Jordan News Agency, Petra. 

He also called for addressing parliamentary inquiries and comments within an institutional framework and in accordance with the Constitution, while ensuring active follow-up on legislative projects in partnership with relevant parliamentary committees.

The Cabinet also approved several decisions, including measures to support agricultural projects and enhance services for farmers, as part of broader efforts to overcome obstacles and bolster national food security. 

Among these decisions was the approval of the second-phase financing agreement for the Emergency Food Security Project with the Islamic Development Bank, aimed at boosting the Kingdom’s strategic grain reserves to better manage future price fluctuations of wheat and barley.

The Council of Ministers also approved agreements with the World Food Programme (WFP) to support initiatives across several sectors, including implementing the national school feeding programme through the Ministry of Education, enhancing the Ministry of Social Development’s capacity to assist vulnerable groups, and providing technical support for food security, food systems, and reducing food waste through the Ministry of Agriculture.

The Cabinet also took steps to alleviate financial burdens on citizens by exempting scholarship students at public universities from outstanding fines to ease the financial pressures faced by students and their families.

The Cabinet also approved a project to establish a natural gas distribution network to supply homes and production sectors in Amman and Zarqa, with the project expected to take four years to complete. 

Designed to meet international safety standards, the network is projected to reduce gas costs for households and industries by at least 35 per cent once operational.

Additional decisions included endorsing the Tax Settlement Committee's recommendations to resolve cases involving 79 companies and taxpayers and approving new legislation and regulations to enhance public services.

Laws approved also included the 2024 General Statistics Law, which aims to diversify and enrich statistical data sources by utilising administrative records from government and private entities, adopting innovative data collection methods, and saving time and resources.

The Cabinet also endorsed amendments to health insurance coverage regulations for employees in companies and institutions for 2024 to enhance employee benefits and ensure broader access to health services.

The National Strategy for Future Stations 2025 (formerly Knowledge Stations) was also endorsed to support entrepreneurship policies and advance the national strategic plan. 

The strategy includes ongoing training in entrepreneurship and contributes to the Public Sector Modernisation Roadmap, with a specific focus on activating 3.5 million digital identities in the near future.

AMMAN — Huawei on Thursday organised the Huawei Jordan Media Forum on December 5, gathering senior leadership from Jordan's key media organisations to address digital transformation challenges and opportunities in the media sector and their transformative roadmap to digital intelligence leveraging advanced technologies in networks, cloud, AI, cyber security and ICT solutions.

The forum's initiatives align with Jordan's Economic Modernisation Vision (2023-2025) and National Digital Transformation Strategy and its implementation plan (2021-2025), which both stress the need to enhance digital infrastructure, develop digital skills, improve the regulatory landscape, and advancing e-government services, according to a Huawei statement. 

During the forum's opening keynote, Vice President of Public Affairs and Communications at Huawei Middle East and Central Asia Ammar Tobba highlighted the importance of open collaboration between public and private sectors in strengthening Jordan's ICT ecosystem. 

He also highlighted the "pressing" need for media sector to catch up with the intelligent transformation, and the priority of nurturing local ICT talent and empowering the next generation of ICT leaders to support Jordan's knowledge-based, sustainable digital economy.

Huawei Jordan CEO Adam Zhang said: "Driven by a young, tech-savvy population, high internet penetration, and government policies, Jordan's digital economy has grown rapidly in recent years." 

The CEO noted that the digital transformation in Jordan has "successfully" integrated digital technologies, strategies, and innovations across various sectors of the country's economy and society. The country has been actively working towards leveraging technology to enhance economic growth and improve public services.

He added: "Huawei is committed to supporting Jordan's digital intelligence through innovative ICT solutions. Our focus on information distribution, interaction, transmission, processing, storage, learning, and inference is designed to deliver exceptional value to customers and partners."

The forum's programme featured keynotes and presentations on the media industry's digital journey, attended by government officials, key opinion leaders, and ICT experts. 

Also participating in the event, Director General of the Jordan Press Foundation Heyam Karaki said that digital media has become a driving force for most major media institutions, yet the "top challenge facing us is how to balance between maintaining authenticity and credibility, and meeting the aspirations of the audience." 

The programme also included three interactive workshops led by Huawei regional and local experts, addressing priority development areas identified through pre-event survey findings of media business pain points. 

The workshops progressed from examining common challenges media organisations face to exploring development opportunities and concluded with creating a collaborative roadmap based on media organisations' priorities.

Regional Director of Digital Industries, Strategy and Marketing Department at Huawei Mohammed Sarrif presented the digital strategy for media organisations, with an introduction to the technologies and solutions for intelligent office campus transformation.

AMMAN — The Chinese embassy in Amman has awarded the Chinese Ambassador Scholarship to eight Jordanian students, enabling them to pursue higher education at universities in China. 

The scholarships were awarded during a ceremony held at the embassy on Wednesday evening, where Chinese Ambassador Chen Chuandong honoured the recipients, who have been selected from among 50 applicants, in the presence of their families, according to the Jordan news Agency, Petra.

Speaking at the event, the envoy stressed the role of the scholarship in boosting educational ties between China and Jordan, noting: "It is an investment in the friendship and shared future of our two nations."

He referred to the "significant" increase in applications this year, which was attributed to growing enthusiasm for educational cooperation between the two countries. 

The ambassador also highlighted the growing number of Chinese students enrolled in Jordanian universities, which currently stands at 700, the highest ever recorded.

Ibrahim Omoush, director of the scholarship department at the Ministry of Higher Education, said that the initiative reflects "solid" relations between Jordan and China, and contributes to enhancing educational and cultural cooperation, and improving the capabilities of the Jordanian youth.

During the ceremony, several students expressed their gratitude to China and pledged to serve as cultural ambassadors to boost ties between the two countries.