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AMMAN — The criminal court prosecutor has charged a 52-year-old man over the weekend with premeditated murder and sodomy of a child in connection with a case dating back to 24 years ago in Zarqa, a senior judicial source said Saturday.

The suspect, a bus driver, reportedly confessed to sexually assaulting and murdering a nine-year-old child in a deserted house in the Hussein neighbourhood of Zarqa, police and the judicial source told The Jordan Times.

“The suspect gave explicit details that only the killer could know regarding this murder, including stuffing a plastic bag in the child’s mouth to choke him,” the judicial source said.

Investigators also relied on some witnesses, including a woman who was eight-year old when the suspect attempted to sexually assault her in the same area but escaped, according to the judicial source.

“The woman informed investigators that she saw a distinct tattoo on the suspect’s arm that she never forgot following the ordeal she went through herself,” the source said.

Other witnesses came forward to testify that the “suspect was known to sexually molest children in the neighbourhood where the murder occurred, while others who knew him testified to seeing him near the crime scene”, he added.

Criminal Court Prosecutor Ahmad Kanani charged the suspect with premeditated murder to prelude to a felony and sodomy, charges that could land the defendant the death penalty, according to the judicial source.

“Kanani will summon more witnesses for questioning before sending the case to the Criminal Court for trial,” the source added.

In the meantime, the suspect was ordered detained for 14 days at a correctional and rehabilitation centre pending further investigations.

The case was part of dozens of unsolved murders that were re-opened recently by the Public Security Department upon instructions by PSD Director Maj. Gen. Atef Saudi.

AMMAN — The number of Jordanians accessing the Internet via third and fourth generation technologies is consistently on the rise, figures by the Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (TRC) showed on Saturday.

By the end of June this year, the number of Internet users in Jordan reached 6.2 million, compared to 5.7 million at the same time last year, according to the TRC

Similarly on the rise, the number of Internet subscribers in the Kingdom reached 2.029 million at the end of June, compared with 1.7 million at the end of 2014.

The commission’s figures indicate that the number of mobile broadband subscribers, which is provided by third and fourth generation technologies, reached 1.7 million of total subscribers, rising from 1.4 million mobile subscribers at the end of 2014.

Of the total number of subscribers, the number of ADSL users reached 223,435 at the end of June, compared to 213,398 at the end of 2014. WiMax subscribers reached 114,133 at the end of the first half of this year, compared to 125,481 at the end of last year.

Fourth generation services are currently provided by Zain Jordan and Orange Jordan. They will soon be provided by Umniah as well.

In terms of mobile users in Jordan, TRC figures showed that mobile penetration reached 152 per cent at the end of June, with some 12.3 million active mobile subscriptions compared to 147 per cent at the end of last year, when total mobile subscriptions reached 11.1 million.

Recent figures by the Ministry of Information and Communications Technology indicated that about 70 per cent of mobiles used in Jordan are smartphones.

Conversely, figures showed that the use of landlines in the country is declining, with subscriptions dropping to 375,601 at the end of June, at a penetration rate of 4.6 per cent compared to 5 per cent at the end of 2014.

AMMAN — The Criminal Court prosecutor has charged a man with murder and robbery almost two weeks after the skeletal remains of a man were found in the badia region, official sources said.

On September 27, a skeleton covered with clothes was found in a remote area on the desert road in Um Al Rasas and coroners determined it was a murder after finding a bullet in the skull, a senior judicial source said.

Investigators could not find any identification on the victim, estimated to be in his 30s, and resorted to their missing persons’ files, the source said.

“A woman was able to identify the victim as her brother from his clothes and watch and a DNA test later proved the family relation,” the source maintained.

Police were informed that the victim had gone missing from his home in April and traced his last whereabouts, according to the source, who is close to the investigations.

“Investigators became suspicious of a man who knew the victim and owed him money, and they questioned him,” the source explained.

In his initial testimony to police, the source added, “the suspect said he was unable to pay back the victim and plotted to murder him.”

“The suspect lured the victim to a deserted area where he shot him once in the back of the head, stole JD600, buried his body partially and fled in the victim’s car,” the source added.

He later sold the vehicle to a man for JD3,000, who sold it to another man that was traced by police, the source explained.

“Police traced the man who bought the vehicle and he positively identified the suspect as the seller of the car,” the source said.

The suspect reportedly confessed to committing the murder and the robbery and re-enacted it in front of investigators, according to a statement by the Public Security Department (PSD).

“The suspect also led investigators to where he buried the body,” according to the PSD statement.

Criminal Court Prosecutor Ahmad Kanani charged the suspect with premeditated murder and murder to prelude to a felony (robbery), a second source told The Jordan Times.

Kinani ordered the suspect detained for 14 days at a correctional and rehabilitation centre pending further investigations, the second source said.

AMMAN — Civil Defence Department (CDD) personnel rescued a medium-sized stray dog stuck in a gate in Sweileh on Friday, according to officials from the CDD media office.

One officer said when the CDD personnel arrived at the scene in the afternoon, they found the dog stuck in the gate of a house in the neighbourhood.

“Our staff found the dog that neighbours say usually lives by a building under construction. It had got lost earlier that day,” the official told The Jordan Times.

This is not the first time the department rescues an animal, according to the department’s media office; the staff is available around-the-clock to help.

Social media users commended the “humane” act performed by the CDD even for a stray dog.

“Civil Defence [Department] of Jordan rescues a dog stuck in bars!!! Good job guys,” users Mohammad Ali commented on Facebook on Saturday.

Abdel Rahman Al Zoubi, another Facebook user, said the CDD always acts with compassion, ensuring the safety of citizens.

Najah Khleif said: “We are blessed to have these guys as our civil [defence] department representatives; they [are] humane and [it is] a blessing to know [they] are working for the benefit of everyone and everything.”

In August last year, rescue teams in Irbid’s Bani Kinanah District were called by residents of Al Rafid village, some 95 kilometres north of Amman, to release a bird that was stuck up in the bulb of a power pole.

Teams from CDD and the electricity company worked at night to set the bird free.

AMMAN — Hope and help are in short supply when it comes to the refugee crisis and the situation of host countries, Her Majesty Queen Rania said recently, urging the international community to support host countries such as Jordan.

During her most recent visit to London, Queen Rania sat down for a Q&A with Zainab Salbi, editor-at-large of Women in the World, at the Women in the World Summit.

During the discussion, Her Majesty quoted His Majesty King Abdullah.

“His Majesty once said that Jordan is stuck between a rock and a very hard place” — at the time, he was referring to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and Iraq, according to a statement from her office.

Queen Rania said it is as if the Arab world had undergone a “series of earthquakes” and Jordan is still feeling the aftershocks but has been able to withstand them, “in fact more than just withstand them, we have become the lifeline and a shelter for many from the region”.

She explained that the crisis has had a tremendous impact on Jordan’s public finances, infrastructure and limited resources.

“Jordan is not a rich country and this is not our first wave of refugees,” said the Queen.

“The magnitude of this crisis has really overwhelmed our capacity to cope. And it has exacerbated the situation for the poorest segments of our society who are seeing prices rise, rents go up, jobs are becoming harder to get by.”

Her Majesty explained how Jordan currently has 140,000 Syrian children in its schools. While schools are trying to cope with so many students, the classrooms have become overcrowded and teachers are struggling to deal with the situation, which is affecting not just the Syrian refugees, but Jordanian students as well.

“This crisis has impacted Jordan in a tremendous way, in every aspect of life.”

Expressing the Syrian and Jordanian frustration with the status quo, Her Majesty said solutions and coping measures should not be limited to the short term.

“We have to change gears, it is not just about urgent humanitarian aid, it is about long-term development.”

Calling upon the international community to increase humanitarian aid and funding, Her Majesty said there is extreme shortage in financing.

“Only 40 per cent of the funding appeal to help host Syrian refugees in our region has been met.”

Conveying her pride in Jordanians, she said: “I am very proud of the way Jordanians have managed to deal with this situation. They have dealt with it with a great deal of perseverance and pragmatism. And quite lot compassion: a Jordanian won’t turn a neighbour in need away.”

“At the end of the day, the situation is unsustainable. We are reaching our breaking point. Because, ultimately, we cannot share what we don’t have. And we don’t have that much at this stage.”

Her Majesty said that when she looks at conflicts in countries such as Syria, Libya, Yemen, Iraq, Palestine or Sudan, children’s education is a major concern.

“You know there are 13.7 million children that are out of school in those countries. It’s the one thing that worries me most.”

“As a mother, I understand how important it is for children to have the reassurance, the routine and the ritual — that’s what gives them a sense of security. Our childhood experiences fundamentally affect who we become as adults — whether we are secure or insecure, confident or not confident, resilient or not resilient, it all starts with childhood.”

“The least we have to do is get them in schools because school in a situation like this is like a haven; it can provide a sense of security, it is the basis for reconciliation and recovery it can build resilience within each and every child,” added the Queen.

“If there is one thing we have to urge people to do — education is what we have to invest in for this generation, otherwise we risk a bleaker future.”

Salbi, also the host of The Nida’s show and founder of the Nida’a Al Nissa Productions, commented on the Queen’s statement, “Let’s drop the first ‘I’ in ISIS”, made earlier this year during a Q&A with Arianna Huffington at the World Post conference, also in London.

Her Majesty elaborated on that statement.

“It is a very dangerous thing if we keep thinking of ISIS [Daesh] as Islamic because there is nothing Islamic about them as relating to Islam then we’re really sort of playing into their narrative.”

The Daesh terror group, she noted, are trying “to cloak their actions with the legitimacy of Islam; they have killed more Muslims than non-Muslims; they have devastated more Arab cities than they have hit Western targets”.

“These people would like to package themselves as being the representatives of Islam and the 1.6 billion Muslims around the world — but they’re not.”

Her Majesty called upon moderates of all religions to unite and align properly in order to defeat them.

“This is a war, not between Muslims and non-Muslims, but between moderates of all religions… against extremists… they want to put the West against Islam, and they want to put Islam against the rest of the world.”

Discussing the issue of extremists’ propaganda tactics and use of social media, the Queen said that one of the biggest factors in the future of war is narrative.

“Unfortunately, their narrative is the dominant narrative; unfortunately, they are dictating global perceptions about this issue.”

“That narrative… [is] creating a huge chasm between Muslims and non-Muslims and that chasm is being filled with mistrust, intolerance, and suspicion, and all that is just going to weaken our world further,” added the Queen.

Highlighting that the Internet is a key frontline, Her Majesty said, “Groups like Daesh… have changed the landscape of warfare, and it is unfamiliar terrain for many governments. Non-state actors are much more nimble and pragmatic and able to adapt much more than bureaucratic states and institutions.”

Urging governments worldwide to partner with the private sector and young people, she said that by bringing them onboard, the credible voices get amplified and extremists are exposed for who they are.

Her Majesty also urged the West to not “buy into the stereotypes” that extremists create through their propaganda.

“We can’t let them be the authors of our story; we have to reclaim our religion and speak for ourselves and not let anyone else speak for us.”

During the discussion on the power of social media and power of narrative, Her Majesty said that social media has been a very useful tool for her to get real-time feedback and that it helps her understand what is on people’s minds and to read about various online initiatives and current affairs.

For the bigger picture of reclaiming the narrative, Queen Rania also urged social media users to stay authentic to who they are under the pressure that it puts on people to project an image that does not truly represent them.

“Staying authentic and genuine is very, very, important when you’re on social media. Don’t let it drive you and just be yourself.”

The Women in the World Summit, attended by approximately 900 people and held at Cadogan Hall this year, by Tina Brown, founder and CEO of Tina Brown Live Media.

Her Majesty participated in 2010 in an interview with Katie Couric and in 2014 in an interview with Brown.

AMMAN –– European cultural centres in Amman celebrated the European Day of Languages on Saturday, holding events across the capital to encourage Jordanians to learn a new language and celebrate multilingualism.

The event was sponsored by the EU and carried out by the union’s National Institutes for Culture Cluster Jordan. 

This year’s theme was travelling and literature, following the motto “Take a journey around Europe with us: Walking in the footsteps of literary greats”, according to a statement by the organisers. 

Visitors attended day-long activities at different EU cultural centres in Amman such as the British Council, Instituto Cervantes, Institut Français, Goethe Institut, Società Dante Alighieri, and the hall of the Greek embassy in Amman. 

The activities focused on enabling participants to explore the languages, cultures and literature of Europe, highlighting how multilingualism enhances intercultural understanding, the statement said. 

Lee Hewson, teaching manager at the British Council, described the event as a fantastic way to get children and adults out to visit different centres in Amman. 

“My theme here is Shakespeare because it is a really important event for us and the British Council worldwide is focusing on Shakespeare,” she told The Jordan Times, adding that last year’s theme had focused on the “sights and sounds” of Europe, incorporating music and dance.

Mohammad Abdullah, 13, expressed interest in further exploring the British playwright’s famous work, noting that before his participation in the event he had never heard of William Shakespeare.

“I am curious to read more about Shakespeare’s works because they have something of everything — love, war and comedy,” he told The Jordan Times at the British Council in Amman.

Hewson noted that she believes the growing interest among young Jordanians to learn another language is due not to events like Saturday’s, but because they either want to study in a foreign country or go on holiday with their families. 

“English is one of the most important languages in the world, so over the last four years, especially with younger people, I see more parents choosing to invest in their children in hopes of giving them a better future,” she added. 

Rawan Qasem, an English teacher at the Levant Academy School, said such activities are useful to students because “they help them learn about different cultures and languages at an early age”.

The European Day of Languages has been celebrated annually since 2001 and focuses on activities for children, according to the programme’s website.

AMMAN — Sundos Halawa has been working hard to learn the Palestinian dabka and perform it while wearing the traditional dress to show her Palestinian identity to the world.

The 20-year old said she wants to learn all aspects of her Palestinian heritage to get to know her ancestors’ culture better and teach it to her peers.

“We can show the whole world through these activities that this is our culture and that our cause will not be buried,” she told The Jordan Times.

Dabka has long been the most common form of folk dance in Jordan, Palestine, Syria and Lebanon.

Halawa was among a number of young girls who performed the Palestinian dabka at the opening ceremony of the fifth Palestinian Cultural Exhibition, held by the Palestinian Culture Centre at the Jordan Construction Contractors Association in Abdoun on Saturday.

Items of traditional significance including dresses, accessories, books and meals are on display at the exhibition, which will run until Monday.

Siham Dabbagh, the president of the centre, said one of the basic goals they work on at the centre is to keep the tradition of embroidery alive for generations to come.

“Palestinian women do not wear this dress as they used to in the past so this aspect of heritage is threatened. When we started in 1991, old women used to come to our centre and work and now they are teaching their daughters and grandchildren,” she told The Jordan Times.

“This work is not only important for these families financially, it also brings young people closer to their families’ heritage,” said Siham Abu Ghazaleh, the head of the heritage committee and exhibitions at the centre.

Dabbagh said women usually work at their houses in the camps and they get the materials from the centre.

“Now, the majority of workers are young and this is what we want,” she added.

She added that the centre also provides scholarships for students and supports more than 100 families financially.

Tulip Issa, who has been learning the Palestinian dabka for four years, said every young Palestinian should learn dabka because “Israelis want to steal our art and culture, and this will help further highlight our culture.”

Rand Mbaideen, one of the visitors, said she noticed a limited presence of young people at the exhibition, adding that this is not a good sign.

“I think more activities need to be held as well to make the young generation aware of the importance of this heritage. They are the future of Palestine,” she told The Jordan Times.

Proceeds of the exhibition will be used to support underprivileged families.

AMMAN — The ninth Jordanian International Electrical and Electronic Engineering Conference (JIEEEC 2015) commences on Monday, with a focus on engineering, energy and trade, Jordan Engineers Association (JEA) President Majid Tabaa said Saturday.

The conference (JIEEEC 2015), to be held at the Grand Hyatt Amman Hotel, will be attended by participants from 14 countries, Tabaa told reporters at the Professional Associations Complex.

In addition to Jordan, Algeria, Turkey, Norway, Germany, Switzerland, Malaysia, Japan, Britain, the UAE, France, Tunisia, Iran and China will take part in the international event, JEA member Moussa Habib said at the press conference. 

JIEEEC 2015 will host 49 speakers, seven workshops, two panel discussions and two technical discussions, according to Habib.

The JEA, in cooperation with the Golden Gate for Organisation of Exhibitions and Conferences Services and official and international institutes and organisations, are also organising the SPARK Exhibition that will feature dozens of exhibitors in fields such as electrical and electronic engineering, lighting, installation, monitoring, energy and computer engineering.

The Interbuild Jordan Fair 2015 will be held simultaneously at the nearby Zara Expo Halls for the eighth time, according to Hani Ghanem, head of the fair organising committee.

Both the fair and the exhibition will host around 100 companies from China, Turkey, Greece, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt and Jordan, Ghanem said, adding that the fair revolves around several issues, including construction technologies, installation techniques for buildings, architecture and lighting. 

More than 4,000 engineers, traders and experts from Jordan and around the world are expected to attend JIEEEC 2015. 

The three events conclude on Wednesday, according to the organisers.

AMMAN – HRH Princess Basma on Thursday called for more efforts to realise the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) that seek to ensure the right of every child to life, protection and well-being.

She made her marks during the “Race for Survival Challenge”, an annual event in which Jordan takes part within a global marathon that seeks to raise awareness on the need to reduce child mortality. 

Princess Basma, Save the Children Jordan (SCJ) chairperson, also called for more awareness about anaemia and its impact on mothers and children. 

She underlined the importance of rallying world efforts to reduce the number of children dying before five due to preventable diseases. 

A total of 40 students from across the Kingdom between the ages of 11 and 15 joined their peers from 60 countries in the race, running a 24km marathon in a relay.

The event was organised by SCJ in cooperation with other stakeholders.

The theme of this year focused on the need to eliminate child mortality due to preventable disease, such as malaria, diarrhoea and pneumonia and reduce the number of children and women in their childbearing age who suffer from anaemia.

International figures indicate that the number of children dying before their fifth year has almost halved in a generation, from 12 million to 6.9 million in the last decade.

However, the global decline is still too slow to achieve the fourth MDG of reducing child mortality by two-thirds by 2015, according to international agencies.

The Second National Millennium Development Goals Report said the Kingdom has made tangible progress in child growth and development.

The mortality rate among children aged under five went down from 39 deaths per 1,000 live births in 1990 to 28 per 1,000 births in 2009, an annual decline of 0.55 deaths per 1,000 births.

As part of SCJ’s efforts to reduce child mortality in Jordan and accelerate the process towards 2015, the organisation has launched a children nutrition programme, which includes raising awareness on the importance of breastfeeding and adequate complementary feeding.

SCJ CEO Manal Wazani noted that that the organisation has managed to reach out to around 20,000 women and children across Jordan during the past few years, and those who were diagnosed as suffering from anaemia were provided with supplements.   

She added that the SCJ cooperates with the health and education ministries and a number of national institutions to implement its programmes. 

During the ceremony, Princess Basma presented plaques and cups to marathon participants.

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah on Saturday met with India's President Pranab Mukherjee at Al Husseiniya Palace, where they discussed the ways to further facilitate Jordanian exports’ entry into Indian markets, the fight against terrorism and bilateral relations, a Royal Court statement said. 

The two leaders discussed boosting Jordanian-Indian joint projects in the fields of fertilisers, IT, medicine, and defence industries.

Discussions covered the needs of the Indian market for phosphate and potash, and the interest of both countries to increase trade exchange to $5 billion within five years.

During one-on-one discussions, His Majesty stressed the importance of having a strategic approach to combat terrorism and the need for further international coordination in this regard.

Mukherjee said the actions of terrorist groups cannot be ignored as their dangers have surpassed geographical borders and become a threat to the entirety of humanity.

At the beginning of an expanded meeting, attended by officials from both countries, His Majesty highlighted India's role as an effective power in the international community, welcoming the Indian president and describing his visit as "historical".

King Abdullah noted that Mukherjee's visit is the first to Jordan and coincided with the 65th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

“As you and I have discussed in our private discussions, this is built on the visit of His Majesty the late King Hussein to your country; and by my visit, where I had the honour of meeting you when you were foreign minister,” His Majesty said, addressing the Indian president.

“So I welcome all of you here today. We look forward to signing a series of memoranda of understanding between our two countries, including the inauguration of [Jordan India Fertilisers Company] JIFCO,” at a cost of $860 million.

On the anti-terror drive, King Abdullah said: “... We are all facing a global challenge of extremism and terrorism. And again, this is an issue that we want to talk [about] to our friends in India with tremendous seriousness.”

He added: “How do we all stand together in this common fight? I mentioned it is a third world war. This is a fight inside of Islam where we have to deal with this issue that brings all religions together. And we appreciate your country’s support in this issue.”

Mukherjee, in his speech, said “I had the privilege of receiving you in our country when Your Majesty visited in December 2006, as indeed as foreign minister of India. And I am happy to have the opportunity that the first Indian president’s visit to Jordan is taking place during my tenure as the president of India.”

The Indian president commended the level of bilateral relations and said there will be a detailed discussion regarding all fields of cooperation, “including the defence productions, security and also announcing the bilateral investment in each other’s countries.” 

He said: “We are interested in expanding the fertiliser project here and we are also interested to have a long-term relationship for a supplier of phosphate to our country.”

“As one of the most important programme any government of India will have to take to be self-sufficient in food production to feed its budging population. We do understand that it is not possible for any country to feed 1.2 billion plus people,” added Mukherjee.

King Abdullah and Mukherjee inaugurated JIFCO Phosphoric Acid Complex at Eshidiya remotely by telepresence, the Royal Court statement said.

During the inauguration ceremony, Jordan Phosphate Mines Company (JPMC) Chairman Amer Majali said the Complex aims at transforming around 2 million tonnes of phosphate ores extracted from the Eshidiya phosphate mines annually into phosphoric acid, which helps manufacture many fertiliser compounds.

India buys fertiliser compounds products to use in its factories as supplementary goods, according to Majali.

JPMC is currently working on establishing similar joint projects inside and outside Jordan to reach an annual excavation capacity of phosphate standing at 12 million tonnes during the next five years, Majali said, adding that most of it will be turned into “high value fertiliser products”.

He expected that all the projects would, altogether, attract investments worth $1.5 million, stimulate several sectors in the Kingdom and create around 9,000 job opportunities, according to the Royal Court.

The meeting and the inauguration ceremony were attended by HRH Prince Feisal, Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour, Royal Court Chief Fayez Tarawneh, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Nasser Judeh, King’s Office Director Jafar Hassan, Labour Minister Nidal Katamine, Justice Minister Bassam Talhouni, and Minister of Industry, Trade and Supply Maha Ali, along with senior officials from the Indian side.