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AMMAN — Arab media outlets should adopt a strategy to counter Israeli propaganda that seeks to demonise Arabs and Muslims, according to journalists and researchers.

Despite regional challenges, Arab media outlets need to increase their focus on covering the Israeli violations against the Arabs in Palestine, as the Palestinian cause remains the core issue in the Middle East, the experts said at a media conference held earlier this week.

“Media in the Arab world should place heavy emphasis on Israeli news and intensify their in-depth analytical coverage of news related to the Palestinian issue,” Nawaf Al Zaro, writer and researcher, said during the event, held by the Jordan Press Association.

Tayseer Abu Arja, chairman of the journalism department at Petra University’s faculty of arts, said the region needs “strong media” performance at this stage to be able to make a difference through its credibility and professionalism.

“Jordan ranks first among Arab states in terms of the volume of news and concentration of coverage related to the Palestinian issue,” said Abu Arja.

Jordan News Agency, Petra, Director General Feisal Shboul said media outlets in Jordan place heavy emphasis on the Palestinian issue, as it is directly connected to the Kingdom’s top national interests.

Shboul said media in the Arab world are facing several serious challenges in light of political divisions in the region, stressing that regional developments should not overshadow the Palestinian issue.

AMMAN — Jordan on Tuesday emphasised the need to resolve frequent closures on the Jordanian-Iraqi border to ensure the continued flow of agricultural and industrial exports to the Iraqi market.

The issue is also pertinent because of the passage of tankers carrying crude fuel through the Turaibil/Karameh crossing into Jordan, Interior Minister Salameh Hammad said at a meeting with Iraq’s Ambassador to Jordan Jawad Abbas. 

The two sides discussed ways to facilitate the transfer of Jordanian goods to Iraq, according to the Jordan News Agency, Petra.

The Turaibil/Karameh crossing re-opened recently, after having been closed by Iraqi authorities since mid-July due to security reasons and fighting with extremists in Anbar province.

Hammad and the ambassador reviewed political, economic and security issues and ways to bolster ties. 

Abbas said he is working with his government to ensure that joint commercial and economic cooperation is not hampered by border closures. 

Al Nakheeb yard at the Iraqi-Saudi-Jordanian border that leads to Basra will also be prepared to operate soon, he added. 

The two sides agreed on the need for continued coordination and consultations regarding all issues of mutual interest, according to Petra.

AMMAN — The World Food Programme has enough funds to maintain its level of assistance to Syrian refugees in Jordan until January, a WFP official said on Tuesday, voicing optimism that this assistance would be extended until March.  

WFP Emergency Coordinator for the Syria Response Operation in Jordan Jonathan Campbell said he is “pretty confident” the UN agency can maintain its support for refugees through March — the end of winter — after a foreign embassy in Amman informally confirmed its plan to provide more support for the WFP to enable it to continue assistance to refugees in need.

“What will happen in the spring I do not know,” he told reporters at the UN agency’s premises in west Amman.   

As a result of contributions from various donors, WFP has been able to reinstate food assistance to vulnerable Syrian refugees who have been without assistance since September this year.

The vulnerable refugees living in Jordanian communities, whose food assistance was cancelled earlier this year, now have their e-cards uploaded with JD10 per person per month.

Furthermore, the WFP has been able to increase the value of its food assistance from JD10 to JD15 to extremely vulnerable refugees. The value of a full voucher is set at JD20.

The programme is funded entirely by voluntary contributions and needs to raise $15 million (approximately JD10.6 million) each month in order to meet the basic food needs of Syrian refugees in the Kingdom. 

“At the moment we have 89,000 beneficiaries at the camps,” Campbell said. 

The WFP official said there are also 438,000 people living in the villages and towns of Jordan that benefit from the assistance. 

He noted that the UN agency classified Syrians into three categories based on field visits and specific criteria — “extremely vulnerable, vulnerable and those who are not eligible for having the assistance”. 

This month, WFP is feeding 212,000 extremely vulnerable refugees and 226,000 vulnerable Syrians.

A total of 95,000 people have been excluded either because they do not need assistance or because they left the country, according to Campbell.   

“We are covering right now 85 per cent of the registered refugees [who] are living below the Jordanian poverty line,” he added. 

Figures he presented showed that 82 per cent of families decreased their food consumption since they stopped receiving assistance. 

The consumption-based Coping Strategies Index measures the frequency and severity of coping mechanisms adopted by families to meet basic food needs. 

It shows that 75 per cent of families are engaged in more frequent and severe coping strategies to meet their basic food needs since they stopped receiving assistance. 

Over two-thirds of families are now restricting consumption by adults for small children to eat. Since the September cuts, 24 per cent of families withdrew their children from school and 29 per cent of families are now sending under-age children to work compared with only 5 per cent before, according to WFP. 

Nearly 80 per cent of families now borrow money to pay for basic food needs and 13 per cent are now forced to send at least one family member to beg in order to meet basic needs compared with only 4 per cent before.

Syrian families were asked about their plans if they do not receive WFP food assistance in the future and only 36 per cent stated they would stay in communities and try to make ends meet, according to WFP. 

Almost half said they would consider leaving Jordan either for Europe (20 per cent) or back to Syria (26 per cent).

AMMAN — Jordan on Tuesday stressed the need to attract sufficient funding to its National Response Plan to the Syrian crisis 2016-2018 to meet the requirements of hosting refugees.

At a meeting with Nicholas Westcott, managing director for Middle East and North Africa at the European External Action Service, Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Imad Fakhoury said the plan is aimed at enhancing the resilience of refugee-hosting communities.

In this context, the two sides discussed proposals to adopt a comprehensive framework of dealing with the repercussions of the Syrian crisis, according to a ministry statement. 

This framework, they agreed, aims at developing programmes that enable Jordan to bear the burdens of hosting Syrian refugees and obtain assistance in the form of grants and soft funding instruments although it is classified as a high-middle income country. 

The framework also aims at attracting job-generating investments and setting up employment projects in the affected communities in cooperation with the EU, the statement said. 

Westcott commended Jordan’s political and economic reforms, which have made the Kingdom a model to follow especially in light of regional events. 

He also expressed his understanding of the burdens that Jordan shoulders as a result of the influx of Syrian refugees, stressing that he will convey the ideas brought up by Jordanian officials to EU officials in Brussels to consider ways of increasing support to Jordan.

Westcott is currently on a visit to Jordan to follow up on fields of cooperation between the EU and the Kingdom, and to enhance bilateral relations within the framework of the Euro-Jordanian Association Agreement and the European Neighbourhood Policy.

During the meeting, attended by EU Ambassador to Jordan Andrea Matteo Fontana, Fakhoury expressed Jordan’s keenness on developing relations with the European Union in a balanced way that serves the interests of the two partners, thanking the EU for its assistance, which helped implement a number of high priority projects and to support the budget. 

He also thanked the EU for the additional assistance pledged to meet the needs of host communities. 

Fakhoury also briefed the visiting official on the political and economic reforms that the Kingdom has embarked on. 

AMMAN — Originally a measure for authorities to resort to for "security reasons", administrative detention is "becoming the norm" when dealing with guest workers with labour-related problems, activists said on Tuesday. 

The law gives administrative governors the "absolute" power to enforce detention without time restrictions, an authority legal and human rights experts say results in "abuse of power", particularly towards "vulnerable" guest workers who lack the knowledge and means to defend themselves.

"As a judge, the law specifies the period by which I can refer people to administrative detention, and I can only extend that by stating my reasons to the court, but administrative governors have the full authority to practise this right," said Amman Prosecutor General Rami Tarawneh. 

He made his remarks at a roundtable discussion held by Tamkeen Fields for Aid, a non-governmental legal-aid centre that works for the protection and promotion of human rights. 

Today, there are 240 foreign workers detained in Jordan, according to Tamkeen Executive Director Linda Kalash. 

"We have documented cases of guest workers who have been detained for more than one year pending the decision to deport them," noted lawyer Hussein Omari, who specialises in the rights of illegal workers. 

He cited Article 37 of the Residence and Foreign Affairs Law, which grants the Interior Ministry the authority to deport any foreigner based on the recommendations of the Public Security Department director, as a "dangerous article that does not comply with human rights principles".

"Under this article, guest workers have to remain in detention until they are deported. Sometimes the inability to secure the ticket price to return to their countries delays their deportation for years," noted Omari. 

Participants at the meeting suggested that the authorities cooperate further with NGOs, which could cover the expenses of guest workers' return tickets to speed up the deportation process.

Kalash charged that administrative detention is becoming an "arbitrary and routine practice", costing the country "a lot of money that can be otherwise utilised to renovate schools and infrastructure". 

"A detainee costs the country JD750 a month and yet it is the first measure taken against guest workers. Labour cases should not lead to detention. A person should not be detained for not going to work," she told The Jordan Times.

Officials from the Public Security Department, its human trafficking unit and the Labour Ministry attended the meeting, along with representatives from the embassies of the Philippines and Indonesia.

They all highlighted their views on administrative detention.

Participants agreed on the need to establish shelters to accommodate detainees and activate the law that allows filing lawsuits against administrative governors who abuse their power.

AMMAN — Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour on Tuesday stressed the need to expedite the Governorate Development Fund’s (GDF) work and the need for it to market itself and complete projects that will provide jobs and reduce poverty and unemployment. 

Chairing part of the Economic Development Ministerial Committee’s meeting to discuss the progress of the fund’s operations, the premier called for joining efforts and ensure the GDF’s success, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The fund was established upon His Majesty King Abdullah’s directives to achieve real development in the Kingdom’s governorates and nearby areas.

Serving as a financing tool, the fund’s goal is to contribute to financing small- and medium-sized projects that can bring about governorate development, Ensour told committee members, stressing the government’s support for the fund.

At the meeting, Hana Uraidi, CEO of the Jordan Enterprise Development Corporation (JEDCO) which supervises the GDF, briefed the attendees on the fund’s role in supporting productive pilot projects that can provide sustainable job opportunities. 

Since July 2012, the GDF has approved financing for 92 projects with a total investment of JD124 million, of which the fund contributed JD58 million, she said. 

These projects are expected to provide 2,800 job opportunities, Uraidi added.

Ministers who are part of the committee stressed the need for further contact between the fund and citizens to acquaint them with available financing mechanisms. 

They also called for focusing on governorates in remote areas with high poverty and unemployment rates. 

Also on Tuesday, the public-private partnership council held its second meeting at the Cabinet. 

At the meeting, Ensour, who heads the council, stressed the need to complete the measures required to activate the partnership programme between the two sectors.

Discussions covered the by-law that will govern public-private partnership, expected to be published in the Official Gazette after its endorsement by a Royal Decree. 

The partnership programme seeks to promote joint public-private investment ventures and arrive at financing solutions for feasible public sector projects. 

AMMAN — The Education Ministry and UNICEF on Tuesday opened three new schools at the Zaatari Refugee Camp, with the support of the EU, Germany and the US. 

The inauguration was attended by representatives of the donors, the UN, NGOs and the director of the camp, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. 

Khawla Abu Al Haija, director of general education at the ministry, said joint efforts to provide educational services and facilities for Syrian students resulted in the establishment of 24 schools at the camp, some 90km northeast of Amman, in addition to six in other camps, and 98 outside the camps. 

UNICEF Representative to Jordan Robert Jenkins thanked the German, Kuwaiti and US governments for their continuous support of the education of Syrian refugee children, adding that opening new schools helps reduce overcrowding in classrooms. 

The development counsellor at the German embassy, Nina Lutter, commended Zaatari Refugee Camp’s achievements and infrastructure, in addition to the services offered to residents refugees, including education.

The camp is currently home to 79,284 refugees, according to the latest figures from the UNHCR. 

Heather Kalmbach, senior regional refugee coordinator at the US embassy, said Jordan hosts more than 53 per cent of Syrian students, with primary school students being the largest segment. 

She noted that children are sometimes forced to work to pay rent or buy food, adding that financial pressures also oblige some parents to marry off daughters as young as 13 years old.

AMMAN — Jordan and the US discussed this week means to advance cooperation on preventing, detecting and responding to nuclear smuggling, according to a US embassy statement.

At a meeting in Amman on Sunday, US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Nonproliferation Programmes Simon Limage and Jordan’s Representative to the Nuclear Security Summit and Ambassador to France Makram Queisi exchanged views on nuclear smuggling and identified areas in which the two governments might work together.

They stressed the importance of a "coordinated, whole-of-government approach to countering nuclear smuggling". 

Several Jordanian ministries and corresponding US agencies participated in the meeting, the statement said.

"Given international seizures of weapon-usable nuclear material over the last 20 years, which suggest that additional materials could be available in illegal circulation", the two sides stressed the importance of "continued vigilance to ensure these dangerous materials do not fall into the hands of terrorists or other criminals." 

Both sides pledged their continued commitment to working together on these issues and identifying opportunities for further collaboration.

"Jordan has been a strong leader on international efforts to counter nuclear smuggling. During the 2012 and 2014 Nuclear Security Summits, Jordan presented a Statement of Activity and Cooperation to Counter Nuclear Smuggling, signed by 20 countries," the statement said. 

"Jordan has also undertaken to coordinate an updated statement at the 2016 Summit in Washington, DC. In support of the commitments outlined in the statement of activity, in February 2014 Jordan hosted a multi-country Counter Nuclear Smuggling Workshop and plans to do so again in November 2015," it added.

AMMAN — Four cases of drug and arms trading were detected in Jerash camp during the past month, Mohammad Obeidat, head of the Jerash Anti-Narcotics Department said Tuesday. 

Obeidat made his remarks during a workshop organised by “Jabal Al Atmat” culture forum at the Jerash Chamber of Commerce hall, the Jordan News Agency,

Petra, reported. Obeidat said 454 drug cases were registered in Jerash since the beginning of 2015, in which 588 suspects were detained, 123 of whom are non-Jordanians.

Moreover, he said 11,206 suspects were arrested for various drug cases in the whole Kingdom since the beginning of the year.

AMMAN — The Royal Jordanian board of directors elected on Tuesday Captain Suleiman Obeidat as interim CEO of RJ effective on Wednesday for a transitional period of three months. In the same session, the board accepted the resignation of CEO Captain Haitham Misto, an RJ statement said.

Obeidat was the chief commissioner of the Jordan Civil Aviation Regulatory Commission between 2007 and 2010, and director general of the Jordan Civil Aviation Authority between 2004 and 2007. At RJ, he occupied the position of deputy president/chief technical officer between 2002 and 2004, and vice president of flight operations from 2000 to 2002, the statement said.