Local

AMMAN — With the start of birds' migration season, the Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature (RSCN) said Tuesday it will intensify inspection on areas where migratory birds rest to prevent their hunting.

RSCN Director of Conservation and Hunting Regulation Section Abdul Razzaq Hmoud said hunting of the majority of migratory birds that pass through the Kingdom is banned, noting that hunting of limited types of birds, such as quails, is allowed.

Hmoud noted that the spring migration season for quails, soaring birds and passerines has started, highlighting that thousands of migratory birds are expected to be seen flying in the country’s skies this month.

"The spring migration season starts in March and continues until mid May, while migration of birds peaks between the mid and end of March. However, there are several factors that control the start and end of the migration season, such as temperatures," he told The Jordan Times.

Migratory birds in the southern hemisphere start returning to Europe and the northern hemisphere in the spring. On their way, they stop over in places like Jordan to rest and drink water.

The period that migratory birds spend in Jordan depends on the availability of green cover and wetlands, according to Hmoud, who noted that during this time last year, the northern region had more wet landscapes compared to this time of the year.

Birds are attracted to the reflection of water while flying, according to conservationists, who said that they make several stops at wet areas in Jordan for resting and preparing nests. 

But the lack of wetlands reduces the number of migratory birds that stop in the Kingdom.

The Rift Valley-Red Sea route is the world’s second most-used flyway, with more than 1.5 million birds crossing it during migration seasons in spring and autumn.

A total of 37 types of migratory soaring birds, which maintain flight by using rising air currents, travel on the Rift Valley-Red Sea Flyway annually, according to the RSCN.

At least five of these are globally endangered — white and black storks, buzzards, eagles and vultures.

The area west of the Hijaz Railway track and the Eastern Badia is the designated bird hunting area in the Kingdom, while the desert area is off-limits to hunters all year-round due to the scarcity of avian species inhabiting the region.

AMMAN — The Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation and the Ministry of Labour on Tuesday signed two cooperation agreements worth JD16.07 million aimed at addressing areas with high levels of poverty and unemployment.

Planning and International Cooperation Minister Imad Fakhoury and Labour Minister Nidal Katamine signed a deal worth JD14.07 million to implement the third phase of productive branches projects in remote areas, through the Development and Employment Fund (DEF), during 2016-2018.

Signing the agreements came in response to local demands to implement income-generating investment projects, articulated during field visits by ministerial teams to areas around Jordan in 2015, Fakhoury highlighted.

"Under the first agreement, the Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation would finance the establishment of 20 productive branches by building hangars with areas of 600 to 4,000 square metres for factories investing inside or outside industrial zones in areas with high unemployment rates," he noted.

The minister added that the agreement is expected to generate 5,000 jobs for local residents of the targeted areas.

The second agreement, which Katamine signed in his capacity as chairman of the board of directors of the DEF, stipulates allocating JD2 million from the Planning Ministry's programme of enhancing social and economic productivity to help unemployed young people establish and develop their projects in their areas, Fakhoury added.

"The agreement — which targets young people in Balqa, Madaba, Karak and Jerash governorates — entails presenting soft loans of up to JD15,000 with an interest rate of 3 per cent and a grace period of 12 months," he said.

The minister added that projects that prove successful within the first three years would receive a 30 per cent discount on the loan value.

He referred to a previous similar agreement with the fund which targeted young people in Maan, Tafileh, Mafraq and Ajloun governorates, noting that both sides will study this year financing youth projects in the remaining governorates of Amman, Zarqa, Irbid and Aqaba.

"The support is part of the ministry's assistance to the fund in the past few years, which amounted to JD15.5 million," Fakhoury noted.

The sum was distributed as JD5 million for entrepreneurial projects, JD6 million for poverty pockets, JD1 million for lending charity organisations, JD1.5 million for relending to targeted categories in Maan and JD2 million for relending to unemployed young adults in Ajloun, Mafraq andTafileh governorates as well as the desert and Jordan Valley areas, he explained.

For his part, Katamine said the DEF has established 16 productive branches in the badia and Jordan Valley regions, which targeted employing young people, 95 per cent of whom are females, noting there will be 30 new branches by 2018.

"The DEF in 2015 spent around JD31 million on recruitment," the labour minister said, adding that the fund is one of the most "effective" tools in creating jobs and helping entrepreneurs start their businesses.

AMMAN — The Queen Alia International Airport (QAIA) has been ranked the best airport in the Middle East in 2015, according to the 2015 Airport Service Quality (ASQ) Survey, an international airport passenger satisfaction benchmark programme.

This "great achievement" for Jordan is testament to the airport’s success, as this is the second year in a row for the Kingdom to win this international recognition, Kjeld Binger, CEO of the Airport International Group, the Jordanian company responsible operating and expanding QAIA, said at a press conference on Tuesday.

QAIA came ahead in the region on the survey's “Best Airport by Region” category, followed by Abu Dhabi International Airport and Doha International Airport, which tied for second place. 

Dubai International Airport, King Fahd International Airport in Saudi Arabia and Tel Aviv Airport came in third, according to the annual survey results posted on the website of the Airport Council International (ACI).

Based on the cumulative results of individual ASQ passenger satisfaction surveys, which are completed every month of the year, the 2015 survey revealed that QAIA once again registered "exceptional improvements" in all 34 key performance indicators across 18 elements.

In order to be eligible for an ASQ Award, QAIA strictly adhered to the ASQ Survey, submitting a representative sample of its flight schedule, destinations and passengers served. 

In addition, ACI conducted regular on-ground audits, and passenger interviews to guarantee compliance with quality control procedures and to validate results, according to an AIG statement.

“The fact that we have been recognised once again by our passengers through such a prestigious global organisation is further testament to our consistent track record of achievements and of our dedicated efforts towards sustaining our standing as one of the top 20 airports, which serves 5 to 15 million passengers,” Binger told reporters.

He added that Jordan continues to reaffirm its well-earned reputation as a safe hub for international investments and as a prime business environment, despite regional unrest. 

The second expansion project for the airport is expected to be completed by September this year, Binger noted, which increased QAIA's capacity to 12 million passengers per year.

The airport handled some 7 million passengers in 2015, according to the CEO.

The ASQ Survey, launched in 2006, covers more than 300 airports across 80 countries. 

Almost 600,000 passengers per year are interviewed prior to boarding their flight and asked to rate their satisfaction with the airport’s services. 

AMMAN — For the third consecutive day, university students from all around the Kingdom, on Tuesday, participated in a sit-in held at the University of Jordan (UJ) to protest a decision by the administration to raise tuition fees about three years ago.  

Students from universities in several governorates joined the Student Rally for the Cancellation of the Tuition Fee Hike group to protest the raise in fees for the post graduate, parallel and international programmes and urge the UJ administration to reverse the decision.

Mohammad Saaydeh, UJ student union president, said the university administration and officials have not responded to the protesters' demands. 

“We are still demonstrating against the decision until we receive a proper response,” Saaydeh told The Jordan Times. 

Sama Shawabkeh, a student enrolled in the parallel programme, said she has to work after class and sometimes during times of lectures to cover tuition fees.

“I have been working as a tutor for school students; I've been teaching science, maths, Arabic, and English, ever since the decision was taken. I had to double my working hours in order to afford studying at UJ,” she added.

The 22-year-old student said she has considered “dropping out” of university several times due to the raise in tuition fees. 

National Campaign for Defending Students’ Rights (Thabahtoona) Coordinator Fakher Daas said students are only asking for their right to continue their studies. 

“Students who can lead  change and excel in their studies now cannot continue their studies. The price of credit hours in some majors amounts to around JD230, which is not affordable to many students.”

Commenting on the sit-in, UJ President Ekhleif Tarawneh said the protest was “unjustified” and is taking place at the “wrong time”, noting that such activities affect lectures.

In a statement released by UJ, Tarawneh said the university has a deficit of JD20.5 million, for covering the education costs of around 67 per cent of the students enrolled in the regular programme and other scholarships. 

The president said UJ, which has some 43,000 students, spends JD700 on each post-graduate student.

He added that the university’s administration and council of deans conducted a study on tuition fees and referred it to UJ's board of trustees for review in November 2015.

The board of trustees formed an academic committee to review the study, and the panel voted against reversing the decision to raise fees, according to Tarawneh. 

Board of Trustees Chairman Adnan Badran told The Jordan Times on Monday that around 65 to 70 per cent of students at the university are enrolled in the regular programme, which means the tuition fee hike does not affect them.

ZAATARI REFUGEE CAMP — The UNFPA celebrated on Tuesday the safe delivery of 5,000 Syrian babies at the Zaatari Refugee Camp at the UN agency-supported reproductive health clinic. 

UNFPA representatives and a number of Syrian mothers who safely delivered their new babies in the camp, some 80km northeast of Amman, attended the event.  

Mariam Abdul Qader, who delivered twins 18 days ago, said being pregnant at the camp was difficult.  

"It was a tough decision to have them in the camp because the environment is different, but thank God I delivered them healthy," Abdul Qader, who has been in the camp for three years and is a mother of six children, told The Jordan Times.  

Daniel Baker, regional humanitarian coordinator at the UNFPA and the head of the agency's country office in Jordan, said the event was aimed at highlighting the needs of women at the camp, who face challenges that make them more vulnerable. 

"One of those challenges is pregnancy, women get pregnant whether there is an emergency or not, whether there is a war or not, and so what is going to happen during the nine months of that pregnancy?" he asked. "What we want is a healthy baby," he told The Jordan Times during the ceremony.  

Baker said the UNFPA, whether in Zaatari camp or in the world, is working to provide good services to women in order to have a healthy and smooth pregnancy. 

The agency started working at the camp in June 2013, he noted, to ensure that both the baby and the mother are healthy.

The UNFPA's Zaatari reproductive health clinic delivers on average 8-10 babies per day, with 2-3 complicated delivery cases which are referred to the Moroccan field hospital inside the camp, according to a statement from the agency. 

The clinic includes 24 beds and a total of 39 qualified Jordanian gynaecologists, paediatricians, midwives and nurses who work at the clinic around the clock, the statement added. 

The medical facility provides 20,000 Syrian women and girls with comprehensive reproductive health and protection services, including 2,000 pregnant women in the camp.

The clinic is operated by the Jordan Health Aid Society and the Institute for Family Health, and is supported technically by the UNFPA and financially by the European Commission and the US government, according to the statement. 

Mohammad Salameh, whose daughter Rima was the baby number 5,000 to be delivered at the camp.  

I am happy that my daughter was delivered safely and was given great medical attention," he said.

AMMAN — A new security services company began manning the UNICEF station in Amman on Tuesday after the UN agency decided to terminate its relationship with G4S, a British-Dutch security company which has "extensive activities in Israel", according to activists.

The Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement in Jordan said in a statement that the G4S has been coming under increasing pressure globally demanding that it pull out of Israel and stop supporting its occupation policies. 

"We are glad that UNICEF followed the UNHCR and ended its contract with G4S. The United Nations should honour human rights, not only by demanding that Israel respect them, but also by leading by example and refraining from paying $2.6 million a year in security services to G4S in Jordan alone," a statement quoted activist Yazid Halaseh, of the BDS movement in Jordan, as saying.

Over the past year, BDS and other civil society organisations have addressed UN agencies in meetings, protests, and through social media demanding that they terminate their contracts with G4S.  

"We sincerely hope that other UN agencies in Jordan... will follow UNICEF and UNHCR and immediately terminate all G4S contracts," Halaseh added. 

In 2007, G4S signed a contract with the Israeli Prison Authority to provide security systems and other services for Israeli prisons that hold Palestinian  prisoners, including children. 

G4S provides systems for the Ketziot and Megiddo prisons, as well as, equipment for Ofer prison and Kishon  and  Moskobiyyeh  detention  facilities,  at which  human  rights organisations  have  documented  systematic  torture  and  ill  treatment  of  Palestinian prisoners, the BDS Jordan statement said.

Israeli military checkpoints, that restrict the movement of Palestinian, and the Erez checkpoint, which isolates Gaza, are also equipped by G4S services.

AMMAN — Four people were killed on Tuesday in a road collision between two vehicles on the Azraq-Omari highway, official sources said.

The accident, which occurred at 8am, around 20 kilometres from the border involved a Saudi vehicle that was heading to the border and a Jordanian vehicle that was coming from the other direction on a two-lane road, a senior traffic official said.

“The Saudi vehicle took a wrongful overturn and collided head on with the oncoming vehicle,” the senior official told The Jordan Times.

The strong impact caused the immediate death of the passengers and both vehicles were engulfed in flames, the traffic official added.

The traffic official added that when vehicles catch on fire, it is usually “caused by a rupture in the gasoline hose as a result of the accident and any small heat source or a spark that could occur form the impact will immediately cause fire”.

Civil Defence Department (CDD) officials said that all four victims, including two Jordanians, were burnt beyond recognition.

The bodies were sent to the National Institute of Forensic Medicine for an autopsy, the CDD official added.

AMMAN — King’s Military Adviser and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs-of-Staff Gen. Mashal Al Zaben on Tuesday received a US military delegation, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

During the meeting, attended by HRH Prince Feisal, Zaben and the delegates discussed the latest regional and international developments.

Also on Tuesday, Zaben met with Qatari Ambassador to Jordan Bandar Al Attiyah and discussed military cooperation.

AMMAN — The army said on Tuesday that Border Guards received 76 Syrian refugees during the previous 24 hours.

Border troops transferred the refugees to shelters and camps, and Royal Medical Services cadres treated the injured, according to a military statement carried by the Jordan News Agency, Petra.

AMMAN — Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour on Tuesday received Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) International President Joanne Liu and discussed the organisation’s services to Syrian refugees, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

Ensour commended MSF’s efforts in the health and humanitarian fields, stressing Jordan’s keenness on expanding the organisation’s services to cover all governorates where Syrian refugees reside and provide them with vaccinations. The premier said the Kingdom is ready to facilitate MSF’s services in Jordan, highlighting the effect of the Syrian refugee crisis on the Kingdom’s health sector.

Liu briefed Ensour on MSF’s activities in Jordan, thanking the government for facilitating the organisation’s work. Mark Schakal, MSF head of mission in Jordan, said the majority of doctors working with the organisation in the Kingdom are Jordanians. Some 560 personnel work with the MSF in Jordan, he added, according to Petra.