Local

AMMAN — The Jordanian Hashemite Fund for Human Development (JOHUD) on Wednesday signed an agreement with Orange Jordan within the framework of a more than 15-year partnership, according to a JOHUD statement.

Under the agreement, Orange Jordan will provide annual support to the fund’s Goodwill Campaign that targets underprivileged families and poor students in the Kingdom.

Orange Jordan’s support will fund 15 annual scholarships and cover the operation costs of the campaign’s mobile clinic, in addition to urgent aid targeting 300 poor families. HRH Princess Basma, head of the campaign’s higher committee, described the JOHUD-Orange partnership as fruitful with a positive impact on humanitarian services.

AMMAN — Jordan on Wednesday rejected North Korea’s hydrogen bomb test, reaffirming its opposition towards any violation of international laws that prohibit the use of nuclear weapons.

Government Spokesperson Mohammad Momani said in a statement carried by the Jordan News Agency, Petra, that the government contacted South Korea to get a briefing on the bomb test conducted by its neighbouring country, noting that the action constitutes a violation of Security Council resolutions.

Jordan, he stressed, calls for nuclear disarmament and is supporting Japan’s request to hold a Security Council meeting to take measures against Pyongyang.  

AMMAN — Two people died and two were injured on Wednesday in a three-vehicle collision on the Airport Highway, according to a Civil Defence Department (CDD) statement.

CDD cadres took the injured to Al Nadim Public Hospital where they were listed in fair condition. Also on Wednesday, a 45-year-old man died in Irbid when his vehicle overturned.

AMMAN — The Public Security Department (PSD) on Wednesday signed a memorandum of understanding with Tamkeen Fields for Aid for support in safeguarding labourers’ rights and combating human trafficking, a PSD statement said.

Deputy PSD Director for Criminal Investigation Affairs Maj. Gen. Tahsin Momani said the PSD has established an anti-human trafficking unit at the Criminal Investigation Department to follow up on cases, especially those related to guest workers who are victims of such crimes.

Tamkeen Director Linda Kalash commended the PSD’s efforts in the field of human rights. The memorandum includes holding workshops for PSD cadres on human rights.

AMMAN — Gendarmerie Department Director Maj. Gen. Hussein Hawatmeh said on Wednesday that ensuring the success of the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in Jordan is a joint responsibility to be shouldered by the public and private sectors, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

At a meeting with Salah Sabra, head of the championship’s organising committee, and its CEO Samar Nassar, Hawatmeh said the Gendarmerie Department is a main partner in the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup. He added that the department has plans in place to ensure the security of the World Cup matches. 

AMMAN — The Jordan Tourism Board (JTB) and Etihad Airways recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to promote Jordan as a tourist destination in South Korea, according to a JTB statement released Wednesday.

The two sides will conduct cooperative marketing campaigns in South Korea, to be launched in 2016, under the memo, the statement said.

“The South Korean market is considered one of the most important and most promising markets for Jordan especially with regards to religious tourism,” the statement quoted JTB Managing Director Abed Al Razzaq Arabiyat as saying.

“This MoU is the beginning of a strategic partnership with one of the biggest and most important international airlines to attract as many Korean tourists as possible, especially in light of the lack of direct routes [between] South Korea and Jordan,” he added.

AMMAN — A total of JD41.6 million were paid in online bills last year, compared to JD600,000 in 2014, the Central Bank of Jordan (CBJ) announced Wednesday.

The CBJ attributed the increase to the growing number of connected parties, which currently stands at 38, representing nine main sectors, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. In 2015, some 478,300 bills were paid online, compared to 16,600 in 2014.

AMMAN — HRH Prince Raad, the Chief Chamberlain, on Tuesday chaired the Jordan Paralympics Committee general assembly meeting and expressed his appreciation for participants’ efforts in achieving success in Paralympics programmes.

The prince said Jordan has attracted “the best” coaches to implement these programmes, according to the Jordan News Agency, Petra. 

AMMAN — The Drivers and Motor Vehicles Licensing Department will soon start announcing available four-digit licence plate numbers on its website, its director, Brig. Gen. Inad Rkeibat, said Monday.

Once the numbers are announced on the website, citizens can book and buy them for JD500 plus 16 per cent sales tax, Rkeibat told the Jordan News Agency, Petra.

He also noted that if buyers do not use the plates on their vehicles within 60 days, they will lose them and the numbers will be offered for sale again.

He said the department will allow one licence plate number for each interested person, Petra reported.

AMMAN — A baby diagnosed with sirenomelia (mermaid syndrome) was born in Irbid’s Princess Badiya Hospital on Tuesday and died 12 hours later, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, quoted hospital Director Abdullah Shorman as saying.

Doctors could not identify the sex of the newborn because of the syndrome, Shorman said, noting that the baby’s legs were joined together from the waist in a mermaid-like shape.

Sirenomelia, he added, is a rare syndrome that affects one out of 70,000 newborns in the world, Petra reported. Babies who suffer from sirenomelia live only 10 to 15 days, Petra reported.