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AMMAN — Jordan and China are holding talks regarding the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on cooperation, as part of China's One Belt, One Road initiative, according to the Chinese ambassador.

A multibillion land and maritime project, the One Belt One Road project aims to connect China to the rest of the world, including Jordan.

"Following the signing of the MoU, we will witness increased cooperation and projects between the two sides in various areas," Chinese ambassador to Jordan, Pan Weifang, said at a press conference Monday held on the occasion of the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China.

The ambassador stressed his country's keenness to boost cooperation with Jordan, noting that the ties were "solid and strategic".

Referring to Chinese President Xi Jinping's speech at the Congress that recently witnessed his reelection for another term, the ambassador said that it "ushered a new era for China", which will include increased and strengthened cooperation with Jordan.

"China is highly interested in boosting relations with Jordan and the ties are witnessing a growing progress on all fronts," Weifang said, underlining the significance of the One Belt, One Road project, which was launched in 2013 and runs through the continents of Asia, Europe and Africa.

The Silk Road Economic Belt focuses on bringing together China, Central Asia, Russia and Europe (the Baltic); linking China with the Arabian Gulf and the Mediterranean Sea through Central Asia and the Indian Ocean. 

The 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road is scheduled to stretch from China's coast to Europe through the South China Sea and the Indian Ocean in one route, and from China's coast through the South China Sea to the South Pacific on the other.

The ambassador also highlighted the opening of Chinese mall in Amman in the near future. The mall was scheduled to be inaugurated two months ago but "high interest" from more Chinese companies delayed the inauguration, the ambassador said.

The ambassador also voiced his appreciation of Jordan's support to the One China policy.

The ambassador highlighted China's two-stage development plan for the period extending from 2020 to the mid-21st century, which aims to develop China into a "great modern socialist country".

Announced by Jinping at the Congress, the plan's first stage will take place between 2020 and 2035, building on the foundation created by the moderately prosperous society.

In the second stage, expected to last from 2035 to mid-21st century, the Chinese Communist Party will "work hard for a further 15 years and develop China into a great modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, harmonious, and beautiful".

In the speech, the Chinese president also highlighted plans for increased economic growth for the country and several other fields.

AMMAN — “We have confused two concepts into one: the high school graduation diploma and the university acceptance. As if academia was the only path towards professional success and any other option was a failure,” said Minister of Education Omar Razzaz at the “Transforming Access to Education” conference held on Monday.

Calling for a diversity of educational paths offered to children, Razzaz stressed the importance of developing innovative and technology-based teaching methods to help school children “regain hope in their future”.

The conference was organised by the online platform FORSA (for9a.com) and the UNESCO Amman Office, and funded by the European Union through the UNESCO-led “Networks of Mediterranean Youth (NET-MED Youth)” project.

In a discussion about the formal and informal educational landscape in Jordan, participants addressed how FORSA, MENA’s largest online platform for educational and training opportunities, has contributed to enhancing youth opportunities in the region. 

Quoting Her Majesty Queen Rania as an inspirational figure promoting education in the Kingdom, EU Ambassador to Jordan Andrea Matteo Fontana said: “In education, technology can be a life-changer, a game changer... Technology can bring textbooks to life … It can bridge the quality gaps.”

The ambassador stressed the EU’s continuous support to youth initiatives in Jordan and the region, saying: “This platform [FORSA] comes in line with our mission to connect all stakeholders in the field of education and vocational training, which we have done through the organisation of various job fairs and the implementation and promotion of vocational training initiatives.”

Launched in 2011, FORSA is the largest online platform that links youth from the MENA region with opportunity providing institutions including universities, NGOs, training centres, companies, among others. 

Almudaffar Shoubaki, marketing officer at FORSA said: “Today, we aim to spread the word about the platform to stakeholders and the public so as to connect even more people through this free and open access platform.”

Commending the efforts of the EU and the Education Ministry, UNESCO representative to Jordan, Constanza Farina, said: “Innovative technology should be used to open new pathways to education, as it is a human right essential to all.”

She stressed the positive impact of NET-MED Youth, a three-year regional project implemented by UNESCO in partnership with youth organisations and partners. 

“NET MED Youth strives to develop inclusive societies and to facilitate platforms for dialogue. In achieving that goal, it strives to reduce the fragmentation of efforts and harness the collective potential of youth in affecting democratic transition towards active citizenship, political participation, economic development, and social inclusion,” she said.

Farina stressed the need to encourage a stronger and direct participation of the youth in shaping policies, especially in light of the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals 10 and 16, respectively related to reducing inequalities and promoting just, peaceful and inclusive societies.

Following the screening of several videos displaying youth success stories, FORSA founder and CEO Sami Hourani conducted a Q&A session with the Education Minister.

“FORSA represents a public good for society. Education and training opportunities need to come from outside the governmental channels if they wish to survive. They need to come from the youth themselves, and this is what this platform is doing,” Razzaz stated.

“The world, including Jordan, is racing to redefine the educational system and we need to learn how to adapt to this ever changing environment. This can only be done through a sustainable continuous education that will enable us to face challenges as they come,” he said, calling for a strong partnership between all parties involved.

Two FORSA users went on to share their success stories, including Sophie Bel, director of the French Institute in Amman, who explained how FORSA helped the IFJ find great young applicants for their SafirLab programme. 

“Schools should only be a focal point for education where students get interested in learning. Anything outside of school can be used as a tool for informal learning. A smartphone is a school in itself,” Hourani concluded.

The conference saw the attendance of representatives from leading universities, NGOs, civil society organisations, companies, and representatives from the international community, among others, according to a FORSA statement.

AMMAN — Daesh militants regained control of Albu Kamal, their last stronghold in Syria, after Iranian-backed militias who claimed to have captured the city a few days earlier were ambushed and forced to retreat, tribal leaders, residents and a war monitor said on Monday.

Fighters from Lebanese Shiite Hizbollah in Syria who joined forces with Iraqi Shiite fighters crossing the border into Syria were taken by surprise by militants hiding inside tunnels in the heart of the city they said they had taken on Wednesday.

The Shiite fighters had launched a ground offensive on the city, in Syria's eastern Deir Ezzor province where the Euphrates River meets, after months of mainly heavy Russian bombardment against the city that killed dozens of civilians and caused widespread destruction.

"Islamic State [Daesh] militants began surprise attacks with suicide bombers and rocket attacks after the Iranian militias were duped that Daesh had left the city," said Qahtan Ghanam Al Ali, a tribal leader in touch with relatives.

The Syrian army had on Thursday declared victory over Daesh, claiming it had killed many militants while scores surrendered. It said the capture of Albu Kamal marked the collapse of the militants' three-year reign in the region.

The army made no mention of the loss of Albu Kamal, but Hizbollah's media unit said intensive aerial strikes pounded Daesh hideouts in the western countryside of the city.

The offensive was spearheaded by elite forces from Hizbollah fighting inside Syria alongside an array of Iraqi and Afghan Shiite militias that had entered from Iraq, a commander in that alliance told Reuters.

"These militant attacks lead to big human losses in the ranks of fighters supporting the regime," the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. 

Albu Kamal, a major supply and communications hub for the ultra-hardline militants between Syria and Iraq, was a big prize for the Iranian-backed militias.

The militants' control of the city and its sister border town of Al Qaim on the Iraqi side had disrupted the strategic Baghdad-Damascus highway that had long been a major arms supply conduit by Iran to its Syrian ally.

The Syrian opposition and some Western countries say Iran's strong military intervention on the side of Syrian President Bashar Assad, alongside its backing of other Shiite militias, is fuelling the sectarian dimension of the Syrian civil war by radicalising mainstream Sunni rebels.

An overstretched Syrian army is now more than ever dependent on Shiite militias on the ground and Russia's military fire power to recapture ground from insurgents.

Daesh, the extremist group that once laid claim to a self-styled "caliphate" spanning swathes of Syria and Iraq, has seen its proto-state crumble in recent months under the pressure of multiple offensives.

On Sunday, jets believed to be Russian intensified their third day of bombing of Albu Kamal and its outskirts, with at least 50 civilians, mostly women and children, killed since Friday, the monitor and residents said. 

In retaliation for their losses, Iranian militias who were forced to withdraw shelled villages east of the city where hundreds of families who fled Albu Kamal had found temporary refuge, the UK-based war monitor said.

In one air strike on the town of Sukariya, east of the city, at least thirty people were killed, mostly women and children from three families, two former residents of the city in contact with relatives said.

Other aerial strikes hit villages of Marshada and Sousa near the river crossing where hundreds of civilians were targeted as they fled in small boats and dinghies, they added.

Albu Kamal has been a target of intensive strikes believed to be conducted by Russia across Deir Ezzor province, which has killed hundreds of civilians in recent months, according to the monitor and local figures.

AMMAN — Chairman of the Joint Chiefs-of-Staff Lt. Gen. Mahmoud Freihat on Monday met with commanders from various ranks to whom he conveyed the greetings of His Majesty King Abdullah, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

Freihat stressed the need for the armed forces to continue displaying the highest degree of preparedness, and the end of the Daesh terror group in Iraq and Syria.

He highlighted topics in areas of operations, training, rehabilitation and joint cooperation with armies of other countries. Freihat emphasised on the significance of soldiers to be informed of the challenges and developments locally and internationally through their commanders. 

AMMAN — State Minister for Investment Affairs Muhannad Shehadeh said that the Cabinet approved allocation of a 10-dunum plot of land for an Indian investor to establish a textile factory in Jerash’s Souf town.

The factory, estimated at a JD5 million investment’s value, will create 400 jobs for the residents of Jerash, 45km north of Amman, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The total land required for the factory will amount to 88 dunums, according to Petra. The minister said that Jerash’s investment map includes establishing 10 projects worth JD11 million.  

AMMAN — The Energy and Minerals Regulatory Commission (EMRC) on Monday issued a licence to activate the Jordan nuclear reactor for research and training at the Jordan University of Science and Technology with a capacity of 5 mega watts, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

EMRC Chairman of the Board of Commissioners Farouq Hiari stressed in a press release on Monday that the commission granted the Jordan Atomic Energy Commission (JAEC) a licence to operate, own and manage the Jordan nuclear reactor for 10 years.

Hiari said that the commission’s role is not restricted to issuing licences and also includes supervising the project’s operational stages. He referred to EMRC’s role in protecting the environment and public health, in its capacity as a regulatory body.

AMMAN — Gendarmerie Department Director Maj. Gen. Hussein Hawatmeh on Monday honoured Oday Abu Hassweh of the Gendarmerie Department for recently winning the golden medal in the kickboxing international championship.

Hawatmeh received the Gendarmerie kickboxing team after they returned from the world tournament held in Hungary, stressing the department’s keenness to support its personnel and youth in their endeavours to excel, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. He also honoured Ali Khalaf, who won bronze at the same tournament. 

AMMAN — The Global Entrepreneurship Week 2017 kicked off on Monday at the Middle East University, celebrating innovators and entrepreneurs’ experiments.

The week, organised annually by the Queen Rania Centre for Entrepreneurship (QRCE), aims at enhancing the culture of entrepreneurship among the youth and raising awareness on its role in supporting the economy, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

Salim Sharif, dean of student affairs at the university, said that this year’s edition will focus on activities aimed at creating successful business opportunities. 

AMMAN — The Kingdom, in coordination with the UAE and Germany, on Monday hosted a meeting of the group supporting stability, affiliated with the Global Coalition against Daesh.

Inaugurating the meeting, which saw the attendance of 100 participants from 32 countries, Foreign Minister Adviser Nawwaf Tal said that Jordan has been and will remain at the forefront of efforts to combat terrorism, which is a threat to all, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

Tal stressed that military successes have to be accompanied by humanitarian, development and political efforts, highlighting the Kingdom’s readiness to be a gateway for reconstruction projects in Iraq, especially after the reopening of the Karameh-Turaibil border crossing. 

AMMAN — Anti-Narcotics Department (AND) personnel have arrested 14 people suspected of involvement in nine drug trafficking cases during various raids in eastern Amman and Ruseifa, the Public Security Department (PSD) announced on Monday.

One of the cases included a raid on a suspect’s house, where AND agents arrested the suspect and seized nine palm-sized sheets of hashish, pills and cocaine which were ready for sale, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported, citing a PSD statement.

All the suspects were referred to the State Security Court prosecutor general after initial investigation was conducted, the PSD said, expressing appreciation to all citizens who contributed to arresting these suspects.