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AMMAN — Following the adoption of the UN Security Council resolution that supports international efforts to seek a political solution in Syria, local analysts differed in forecasting the scope and influence of Jordan’s role in these efforts. 

The resolution calls for a nationwide ceasefire when the Syrian government and opposition begin talks and for the UN to oversee these negotiations as early as January.

Political analyst Samih Maaytah said Jordan’s role in addressing the crisis is strengthened by the fact that Amman has been a staunch advocate of a political solution that is inclusive of all.

Besides, according to the analyst, the Kingdom has been keeping good ties with all stakeholders, including Syrian opposition groups.

The world powers are aware of this fact, he added, and subsequently, Jordan’s role is likely to be significant in the coming stage.

For political analyst Oraib Rentawi, director of  the Jerusalem Studies Centre, Jordan will be a player in the closing chapter of the Syrian crisis, but its role will be restricted mainly to issues of direct impact on the country, such as refugees and border security. 

“I do not see a role exceeding these two issues,” Ad Dustour columnist told The Jordan Times over the phone.

The Kingdom, however, has been assigned by partners taking part in talks over Syria to compile a list of terrorist groups active in Syria. 

The controversial list, which officials insist does not represent Jordan’s opinion, was presented to a New York meeting of stakeholders Friday. 

Still, Rentawi believes that Jordan will be very eager to see a political solution in Syria as the crisis next door affects the country more than severely due to proximity.

However, Adnan Abu Odeh, a veteran politician and political thinker, highlights a special feature of the complex crisis in the northern neighbour, namely, that there are too many cooks.

“Jordan is only one of the 100 or so actors,” in the process, Abu Odeh said, noting that since World War II, no crisis has seen such a number of actors, the majority of whom are groups who have been active in the internal landscape of the civil war raging for five years in the Arab country.

What adds to the complexity of the already tangled situation is that domestic, regional and international actors do not have static stances, Abu Odeh said.

However, the political analyst seems less optimistic about prospects of success of the UN-backed efforts to bring back peace and stability to Syria.

“The rules of the game have changed. The main target now is the terrorist groups, while the actual challenge is the envisaged political transformation,” he concluded. 

AMMAN — The government on Sunday extended incentives granted to first-time homebuyers until November 30, 2016, according to the Jordan News Agency, Petra. 

Under the decision, taken during the Council of Ministers’ meeting, would-be homeowners will be exempted from registration fees for the first 150 square metres (sq.m.) of apartments sized 180sq.m. or less. 

Before July of this year, the exemption incentives applied only to buyers of apartments sized 150sq.m. or less and the first 120sq.m. were exempted from fees. 

Finance Minister Omar Malhas said that the decision to extend the exemptions, which was supposed to expire by the end of this year, would enable medium-income Jordanians to buy decent housing units, adding it would also encourage developers to build new residential projects. 

President of the Jordan Housing Developers Association Fawaz Al Hassan said the decision to extend the incentives was expected due to its positive impact on the economy because it boosts demand for apartments. 

However, Hassan said the government should have extended incentives until the end of next year instead of November 30. 

He told The Jordan Times the government should keep the incentives permanently to ensure a fair chance for future buyers. 

According to official figures from the Department of Land and Survey (DLS), trading in the property market in the first nine months of the year reached JD5.46 billion. 

The number of residential apartments sold between January and September of this year was 30,621, according to the DLS report, which showed that home sales were 13 per cent higher compared to the same period last year. 

Housing developers expect trading in the property market this year to be close at JD7 billion. 

In 2014, real estate trading registered a record JD7.76 billion, 22 per cent higher than the figure recorded in 2013 (JD6.34 billion).

AMMAN — There are no specialised journalists or reporters in the fields of environment and tourism in Aqaba, as local media outlets send a correspondent to cover everything in the port city regardless of his or her speciality, according to a study released Sunday. 

The study, conducted by the Royal Marine Conservation Society of Jordan (JREDS), also revealed a lack of media outlets specialised in environment and tourism in Aqaba, some 330km south of Amman. 

The report is part of the "Integrated Management of Coastal Zones: An Approach for Development and Growth" project, funded by USAID's FHI360 to support civil society projects. 

The Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority (ASEZA) is interested in environment and tourism issues as it has directorates for both, JREDS Executive Director Faisal Abu Sondos told reporters.

Ehab Eid, JREDS programme director, said the study suggests solutions to improve media coverage of environment and tourism issues in Aqaba, adding that journalists say there is a lack of available information in these fields and that ASEZA officials do not cooperate with the press.

The study calls for offering training courses targeting media correspondents in Aqaba on covering environment and tourism.

It also suggests creating a diploma at universities to train a new generation of media professionals specialised in these fields, and organising workshops where specialists in environment journalism train journalists in Aqaba.  

Project Coordinator and Director of JREDS Awareness Programmes Ebtihal Al Tarawneh said a survey was conducted to analyse the strengths and weaknesses of media in covering environmental issues in Aqaba. 

The journalists who responded to the questionnaire said they believe in the importance of covering environmental issues and linking them with tourism in Aqaba.

But the survey revealed a lack of coordination between reporters covering the environment beat and correspondents from their media outlets in Aqaba.

Despite being few and far between, media programmes aimed at raising public awareness have had a positive impact, according to the study, a copy of which was sent to The Jordan Times.

The study also revealed weaknesses in media outlets' ability to identify "hot issues" related to the environment and how to present them to their audience.

JREDS is a nonprofit organisation dedicated to preserving and protecting the marine ecosystem.

AMMAN — The US embassy announced on Sunday that a $160,000 grant has been awarded to the faculty of archaeology and anthropology of Yarmouk University for the conservation and rehabilitation of the Roman Aqueduct of Gadara in Um Qais.  

The award was made possible through the Ambassadors Fund for Cultural Preservation (AFCP) which supports the preservation of cultural sites, objects, and forms of traditional cultural expression around the world, according to an embassy statement.

The Roman Aqueduct in Um Qais, some 35km northwest of Irbid, is "the largest Roman water system in the world", covering 170km from Jordan to Syria — a distance more than nine times the length of the second longest subterranean aqueduct in Italy. 

The grant will enable the department of conservation and management at Yarmouk University and the Department of Antiquities "to open the aqueduct tunnel to tourists and increase overall interest in the site as a tourist attraction".

Since 2001, Jordan has received around $1.7 million in grants to fund 14 cultural heritage preservation projects in places like Petra, Al Beidha, Um Al Jimaal, Abila, the Jordan Valley and downtown Amman, according to the statement.

"The United States is proud to stand as a partner in preserving and protecting Jordan’s heritage sites. Tourism remains one of the foundations of Jordan's economy and the United States is committed to supporting its continued growth," the embassy said.

AMMAN — Authorities are opening new routes to regulate traffic flow affected by a crack in Abdullah Ghosheh Street, a traffic official said Saturday.

Amman Central Traffic Department (CTD) Director Col. Bassem Kharabsheh said traffic direction will be reversed on the unaffected side of the street, heading towards the airport road, to accommodate traffic coming from that road.

Meanwhile, motorists driving towards the airport road will take a detour through Shuhada Al Haram Al Ibrahimi Street.

“The road crack caused traffic density, but the CTD is working with the Greater Amman Municipality (GAM) and other concerned authorities on facilitating traffic flow,” Kharabsheh told The Jordan Times over the phone.

He noted that Shuhada Al Haram Al Ibrahimi Street, which is parallel to Abdullah Ghosheh Street, has witnessed minor cracks due to drilling at a nearby construction site; therefore, lighter traffic towards the airport was diverted to it.

“Our measure on Thursday to close the lane from the airport road leading towards Abdullah Ghosheh Street and diverting the traffic was precautionary,” Kharabsheh said, noting that further analysis proved that the suggested route will ease traffic flow. 

Drilling at a construction site where a commercial complex is being built caused the crack, according to GAM, which sent an official letter to the owner of the site, including engineering reports regarding the method and duration needed to fix the crack.

Raed Haddadin, director of the building control department at GAM, said the construction site obtained all the required approvals, noting that road closures are around 150 metres long, with the damage estimated to extend for around 80 metres, according to a statement e-mailed to The Jordan Times.

The official noted that GAM’s role concerning under-construction buildings is “regulatory”, while engineering reports and construction protection designs are the responsibility of the engineering firm overseeing the building project.

AMMAN — Dawood Dawood had not been able to celebrate Christmas properly in his hometown of Mosul since 2003 because of the instability in Iraq. 

Dawood said he used to observe only simple, “traditional rituals” to mark the occasion.

The Iraqi Christian said he understood the true meaning of Christmas joy when he came to Jordan over one year ago. 

“This is thanks to the help of the people of Jordan who have made it possible to enjoy the holiday season,” Dawood told The Jordan Times at a Christmas celebration at the Sacred Heart of Jesus Church in Naour on Friday, where  many Iraqi families gathered to mark the approach of Christmas.

Father Rifat Bader, director of the Catholic Centre for Studies and Media, described Christmas as a “profound spiritual occasion”, and a time to draw a smile on children’s faces and provide their families with some hope for a brighter future.  

“We are happy to receive the children from Iraq who were forced to flee to Jordan with their families... this is their second Christmas celebration in Jordan,” Bader told The Jordan Times.

He noted that Jordan is unique because it has opened its doors to refugees regardless of their backgrounds.

“The special thing about today’s event is that it reminds us that refugees left Mosul because of Daesh, because of their religion, and it is very important for Jordan to show that we not only welcome political refugees but also religious refugees,” Bader added.

Around 4,000 Iraqi Christians currently reside in Jordan, according to official figures released in November.

The Iraqis attended a mass to pray for peace in the region and their children had the chance to meet Santa Claus and receive gifts.

Firas Ghazi, whose daughter Mariam was born in Jordan after he came to the Kingdom last year, said the warm hospitality of Jordanians made him feel at home.

“I wish the instability in the region would come to an end and that humanity is respected,” he said.

AMMAN — The Jordanian Food Bank (JFB) signed an agreement with the Jordanian Austrian Company to provide food items to underprivileged people. 

The aim of the agreement is to continue combating hunger and assist underprivileged families in local communities, signatories said at the signing ceremony on Thursday.

The deal also highlights the importance of the private sector's role in reducing hunger and achieving food security through developing long-term plans and programmes. 

Under the agreement, the Jordanian Austrian Company is going to provide 25 underprivileged families with food packages every month as well as half a tonne of rice per month from "INTY RICE" in support of various JFB programmes, the signatories said.

"Hunger is not always a result of shortage in available food; it may be due to poor distribution and a lack of social awareness," Jordanian Austrian Company CEO Rashad Garabet said at the signing ceremony. 

"Through our cooperation with the JFB, we seek to avoid wasting food, create social responsibility and use it to meet at least part of the community's needs," he added.

Garabet urged local companies to adopt similar ideas and work with the JFB to contribute to eradicating hunger and poverty, in addition to creating more job opportunities. 

The CEO said he and his staff will work with JFB every month as volunteers, packing food parcels and distributing them to the targeted families. 

JFB Executive Director Kawther Qatarneh stressed the importance of the agreement in promoting charity work through the distribution of food to poor families registered in the bank's database.

Founded in 2010 by a group of businesspeople, the JFB is a nonprofit organisation that works on creating projects and partnerships aimed at reducing hunger in Jordan, according to its website.

AMMAN — Authorities dealt with approximately 20,000 violations on water mains and resources across the Kingdom over the past two years, when a national crackdown on water theft was launched, a government official said on Saturday.

Under the ongoing campaign, the Water Ministry and security authorities also sealed 701 illegal wells, the official said on condition of anonymity.

“A total of 19,910 violations have been dealt with since the campaign began in 2013, while water companies and security forces seized and confiscated 35 drilling rigs used to dig wells,” the government official noted.

The ministry banned the drilling of wells in 1997 to limit random pumping of water and preserve aquifers from depletion and salinity. 

In the Jordan Valley, authorities also discovered 1,158 violations on state-owned lands and 6,495 infringements on the King Abdullah Canal, which is supplied by the Yarmouk River to irrigate 40 per cent of Jordan Valley’s crops and provide some 40 per cent of the capital’s water after it is treated at the Zai Water Treatment Plant.

In November alone, the ministry and security forces sealed 10 illegal wells and handled 780 violations on water networks and resources, 71 on state-owned lands and 172 on the King Abdullah Canal, according to the ministry’s figures, released recently.

Water theft in Jordan is blamed for 70 per cent of water loss, according to the ministry, which seeks to save an estimated 35-50 million cubic metres of water stolen or wasted via illegal fixtures and the drilling of illegal wells.

The amended Water Authority of Jordan Law stipulates stiffer penalties against those who abuse any element of the water system.

Those who abuse water carriers and mains, wastewater, pumping, purification or desalination stations; or cause the pollution of water resources, pipes or stations used for drinking water; and dig or are involved in the digging of wells without obtaining a licence, face a prison sentence of up to five years and fines up to JD7,000.

In addition, violators of water and wastewater projects are jailed for up to three years and fined up to JD5,000, according to the amendments.

All penalties stipulated under the law are doubled in the case of repeat offences.

AMMAN — A 13-year-old girl who was reportedly burnt by her father last week, died in hospital over the weekend, official sources told The Jordan Times on Saturday.

The victim’s 46-year-old father, a security guard, reportedly set her ablaze at their home in Jabal Qusour on December 12.

“The victim died on Thursday at Al Bashir Hospital as a result of burns on 75 per cent of her body,” Public Security Department Spokesperson Lt. Col. Amer Sartawi and a senior judicial source said.

Kais Koussous, head of the National Institute of Forensic Medicine, said a post-mortem showed that the teenager died as a result of the burns.

“Usually burns on over 40 per cent of the body for someone the victim’s age will eventually lead to death and this is what happened in this case,” Koussous added.

Criminal Court Prosecutor Issam Haddidi, who is handling the case, is expected to level murder charges against the father, a senior judicial source said.

“The suspect will be summoned from the holding centre by Haddidi in the next few days to be informed of the new charges,” the senior judicial source said.

The suspect ran away from the house and was later arrested by the police, Sartawi told The Jordan Times on the day of the incident.

In his initial testimony in front of Criminal Court Prosecutor Salah Taleb, who was on duty on the day of the murder, the suspect said he had no intention of murdering his daughter.

The suspect claimed that his daughter went missing from home for a few hours and when she returned he reportedly slapped her on the face to discipline her and she fell on the kerosene heater and her body caught fire.

The suspect claimed that he wrapped her in a blanket in an attempt to extinguish the fire and that his brothers, who lived in the same building, rushed to help him.

However, a senior official source told The Jordan Times recently that the girl told police in hospital before her condition deteriorated that “her father set her ablaze”.

The judicial source said the suspect informed investigators that he was tried and acquitted at the Criminal Court in 2008 on charges of burning and killing another daughter.

“Haddidi has sent a memo to the Criminal Court to review the old verdict and if it was the same method as this incident, he will include it as evidence so that the court can issue a stiff sentence against him,” the judicial source said.

The security guard had divorced his wife, and the only other resident in their house is his 16-year-old son, who was not at home when the incident occurred.

AMMAN — The Labour Ministry has resolved more than 56 labour disputes this year, with support from the General Federation of Jordanian Trade Unions (GFJTU), Labour Minister Nidal Katamine said Saturday.

Speaking at the federation’s eighth annual conference, Katamine added that the ministry works to safeguard the rights of labourers and employers, and to ensure the flow of the production process. 

He commended GFJTU’s role, noting that it has ensured professionalism, which “raised the standard of living and work efficiency, achieved social and economic development, and protected the rights of association members”. 

“We are all obliged to work together as a team... to achieve... equality and justice,” noted Katamine, who was deputising for Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour. 

GFJTU President Mazen Maaytah emphasised the importance of engaging the workforce and their role in the country’s social development.

“The federation has managed to sign around 380 collective agreements during the previous session, from which over a million workers around the Kingdom benefited,” Maaytah said. 

He added that the agreements cost around JD600 million, which helped “raise the living standards of citizens, stabilise the work environment and ensure job security”.

Maaytah noted that discussions and seminars facilitate the process of engaging the workforce and remove obstacles to development and production. 

“The Arab world is [witnessing] harsh circumstances; it is necessary for us to deal with them and agree on a suitable positive reaction to these changes,” he said. 

Khaled Habahbeh, of the GFJTU’s public relations department, said there are plans to improve its relationship with journalists and to launch a website soon to improve its outreach.