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AMMAN – His Majesty King Abdullah has met in New York with an array of world leaders who arrived in the city to take part in the 70th United Nations General Assembly meeting.

Talks focused on bilateral ties, along with regional and international issues of concern, the Royal Court said in statements.  

During the meetings, the King underlined the need to coordinate efforts to fight extremism and terrorist organisations, renewed Jordan's call for political solutions to regional conflicts and urged international pressure on Israel to end its violations in Jerusalem's holy sites.  

His Majesty also presented Jordan's case regarding the refugee burden it has been shouldering since the Syrian crisis erupted five years ago, urging proportional international support to help the Kingdom carry on with its humanitarian mission of hosting around 1.4 million Syrians, the majority of whom live in host communities.  

On Sunday, His Majesty held a meeting with Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglo, during which the two sides underlined the vitality of concerted international efforts to counter terrorism and extremism.

They also agreed that Syria needs a political solution to end the suffering of its people and the state of chaos the country is undergoing. They urged the world community to stand by countries hosting Syrian refugees to enable them to carry out their humanitarian duty towards these refugees.

On Jerusalem, the Turkish premier stressed the importance of the Hashemite custodianship in safeguarding Al Aqsa Mosque, voicing his country’s support for the King’s efforts to confront Israel’s policies aimed to change the status quo of the holy sites in the city.

They also discussed ways to support Iraq’s stability through working with all its components to counter terrorism and protect the unity and sovereignty of the country.

Earlier Sunday, King Abdullah met with Austrian President Heinz Fischer. He reiterated the need for the international support to address the Syrian refugee crisis.

The two sides reviewed the developments in the Syrian conflict and stressed the importance of arriving at a political solution that ends the suffering of the Syrian people and guarantees their country’s territorial integrity.

Moreover, King Abdullah and Fischer stressed the importance of intensifying international efforts to combat terrorism and radical ideologies, in a manner that safeguards regional and global security.

At the meeting, the Austrian president expressed his appreciation of the King’s efforts at regional and global levels, and extended an invitation to King Abdullah to visit Austria soon.  

On Saturday evening, His Majesty met with Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama over efforts to counter extremism and terrorism and spreading the message of true Islam, which, they agreed, embraces the values of moderation and tolerance. The two sides agreed to coordinate their efforts regarding all issues of mutual interest, especially those related to the fight against terror “which threatens the security and stability of the region and the entire world”. 

His Majesty pledged Jordan’s support for Albania’s plan to establish a regional centre to disseminate a culture of tolerance and outlined Jordan’s initiative in this field, including the Amman Message, Common Word and the World Interfaith Harmony Week. 

Also on Saturday, the Monarch met with Panamanian President Juan Carlos Varela, with whom he discussed economic and trade ties between Jordan and Latin America and efforts to take them to a new level. 

At his meeting with the president of Gabon, Ali Bongo Ondimba, King Abdullah called for better ties with central Africa, especially as Gabon is the current president of the Economic Community of Central African States.

On Friday, the need for international support for Jordan’s efforts to host Syrian refugees and the anti-terror efforts topped the agenda of meeting between King Abdullah and Spanish King Felipe VI.

HRH Crown Prince Hussein attended the meeting, during which the Spanish monarch thanked Jordan for its endeavours regarding the refugee file and efforts to combat terror.  

The two leaders also discussed ways to bring back stability to both Syria and Libya through peaceful means. 

During a meeting Friday with Lebanese Prime Minister Tammam Salam, the King noted that both countries share the same challenges related to the large refugee communities and the consequences of regional turmoil.  

His Majesty stressed Jordan’s support for Lebanon as it stands up to face these challenges. 

King Abdullah is due to address the plenary meeting of the UN General Assembly on Monday.

AMMAN — Authorities on Wednesday have announced preparations and emergency plans for the Eid Al Adha holiday to ensure no disruptions in the provision of services to the public.

The Ministry of Health prepared an action plan for the five-day holiday, which started Wednesday, to guarantee that medical services at health centres, emergency rooms and other facilities are provided as usual, its spokesperson Hatem Azruie announced earlier in the week.

He said the ministry will intensify its health monitoring campaigns, in light of the increasing demand on food during the holiday, calling on food outlets to comply with public health and safety standards.

The ministry also advised parents to prevent children from playing with firecrackers during the Eid holiday to avoid fireworks-related injuries.

The Ministry of Industry, Trade and Supply announced a set of measures to be implemented during the holiday that includes intensified market control efforts, with focus on fresh meat and livestock sales.

The ministry’s spokesperson, Yanal Barmawi, said the inspection campaigns will also cover bakeries, confectionaries and outlets selling gifts, in addition to the various sales and promotion offers, which he said have become common during such holidays.

The Ministry of Social Development said it would combat vagrancy during the holiday in coordination with the Public Security Department (PSD) by increasing the number of inspection teams.

The Labour Ministry said it has already intensified its inspection campaigns on restaurants, supermarkets, garment stores and confectionaries that employ illegal workers.

Around 650,000 sheep, both local and imported, were expected to be available on the local market for sacrifices, according to the Agriculture Ministry. 

According to Islamic teachings, Muslims can sacrifice sheep, cattle and camels during the four days of the Eid.

The Greater Amman Municipality said it has designated 14 locations in the capital for slaughtering. Places include Basman, Shafa Badran, Khreibet Al Souq, Sweileh, Bader, Nazzal, Muqabalin, Nasser, Marj Al Hamam, Ras Al Ain, Qweismeh and Marka in addition to official slaughterhouses in Madonah and Ain Ghazal in eastern Amman.

The PSD has prepared a comprehensive security plan to be implemented during the holiday, focusing on security, traffic and environmental aspects to ensure the safety of the public.

The PSD also called on citizens and residents to take necessary procedures to secure their houses and shops using proper equipment, and to keep precious belongings in safe places.

The department will also deploy traffic patrols within areas of traffic congestion, and remain vigilant over the sale of firecrackers and fireworks.

The Civil Defence Department called on motorists to be cautious while driving on highways and inter-governorate roads during the holy occasion in order to avoid accidents.

The department also called on parents to watch over their children and not to allow them buy toys that are not suitable for their age.

Eid Al Adha, or the feast of sacrifice, marks the end of the pilgrimage season to Mecca and falls on the 10th of the lunar month of Dhul Hijja, or the month of pilgrimage.

The feast of the sacrifice marks the end of the Hajj season, when Muslims of sufficient means are required to sacrifice livestock in remembrance of Prophet Ibrahim’s willingness to sacrifice his son Ismail to God.

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah, the Supreme Commander of the Jordan Armed Forces-Arab Army (JAF), on Wednesday visited one of JAF’s Border Guard units on the northern frontlines, according to a Royal Court statement. 

The King was received by Chairman of the Joint Chiefs-of-Staff Gen. Mashal Al Zaben, who is also the King’s military adviser, and Border Guard commanders. King Abdullah spent some time with the unit’s personnel, checked on their conditions and congratulated them on Eid Al Adha. 

His Majesty commended the distinguished level and the high morale of the Border Guards as they defend the Kingdom’s frontiers. He particularly lauded their humanitarian efforts in assisting Syrian refugees, the Royal Court said, adding that the soldiers expressed their loyalty to the Hashemite leadership and congratulated King Abdullah on the Eid occasion.   

AMMAN — Traffic policemen dressed in civil attire will be using means of public transportation to monitor drivers’ abidance by traffic regulations.

Policemen will penalise drivers of public vehicles, mainly taxis, who do not use meters, as well as those who refuse to transport passengers or illegally cherry pick passengers going to destinations the drivers find convenient, according to a Public Security Directorate (PSD) statement issued Wednesday.

The campaign, which is part of the PSD’s preparations for Eid Al Adha, will also fine drivers of privately owned cars who transport passengers for money in a move to punish those who put finances above the safety of passengers.

Any of these violations will result in seizing the vehicle up to a week and it will not be returned unless the driver pays the fine, the statement said.

So far, ‘a total of 150 cars have been temporarily seized in Amman, Irbid and Zarqa governorates’.

Commenting on the issue, Ahmad Abu Haidar, president of the Transport Services and Taxi Owners Union, urged drivers of public transportation vehicles to comply with traffic regulations.

“Many non-car-owning families depend on taxis to move around during Eid and visit their relatives,” he told The Jordan Times over the phone, commending the PSD’s inspection move.

Meanwhile, the union receives a “very limited” number of complaints from consumers, according to the sector leader, who cited private cars working as taxis as a major issue facing the sector.

He also cited an increase in privately owned cars used for personal use, due to the lack of a “regulated” transportation system.

There are some 11,000 taxis in Amman, while the number in all the other governorates reaches 4,700, according to Abu Haidar, who also cited some 3,000 fixed-route service cars, in addition to some 2,000 internal and external travel vehicles and some 2,000 driver-training cars.  

Citizens can report violations of traffic regulations by calling the directorate’s command and control centre at 911 or traffic operations at 06/4888230 or 0790190848, according to the PSD.   

AMMAN — Propelled by a season of benevolence, students from different universities around the Kingdom volunteered in several activities in Tafileh, distributing seasonal decorations and clothing to schoolchildren over the week leading up to Eid Al Adha.

Around 35 students engaged in several events in Tafileh, some 180 kilometres southwest of Amman, to provide least privileged children with a “better Eid”, organisers said.

“We have always come across stories of the lack of facilities in schools in Tafileh, but we did not know it was this bad until we went there and experienced it ourselves,” Rose Sari, a pharmacology student at the University of Jordan told The Jordan Times.

Sari said there were about 65 students in the school, 20 of whom were girls, who walk around five to seven kilometres from their homes to the school on a daily basis.  

“It is going to be winter soon and these children do not have enough clothes to keep them warm during their early morning walk to school,” Hadeel Muhaisen, the event’s organiser, said.

“We thought of giving them something they would benefit from,” the student added.

The school is located in northern Tafileh, near Karak, in one of the poverty pockets in Jordan. 

“People who live there lack many facilities due to the town’s location, so they tend to go somewhere that is 30 kilometres far from their homes to buy necessities, including bread,” Sari noted.

“On the occasion of Eid, we aim to spread positivity and happiness and suggest some solutions to the challenges residents face in their daily lives.”

Muhaisen said the project engaged students from different majors and interests.

“Many volunteers helped hairstyling the children and make them feel appreciated and loved in the lead up to Eid,” she added, as “little things matter”.

Sari’s initiative was fuelled by her belief that “it is every child’s right to celebrate Eid the way they imagined it to be.”

AMMAN (JT) — Under the patronage of the Department of Antiquities of Jordan, the French Institute for the Near East (IFPO) held on September 17th a workshop titled “Offerings to Gods, Offerings to Man — Archaeology of Rituals in the Nabataean World“.

Ancient Nabataean heritage, language and rituals were at the forefront of the discussion, as nine distinguished scholars gathered from global universities to present their findings.

Archaeologists, historians and anthropologists specialising in Nabataean legacy covered the territories of southern Jordan and northwestern Saudi Arabia in order to reconstruct life in this ancient kingdom.

Sebastiano Lora, a PhD holder engaged in a German-Saudi collaborative project, revealed through investigations a large trapezoidal structure built of stone masonry, in the centre of the oasis of Tayma, in northwestern Saudi Arabia. 

“The entire complex was continuously in use from the period of the Liyanite dynasty in Dedan (approximately from 4th to 2nd centuries BC) until late antiquity, and bore witness to multiple alterations in layout and function,” added the scholar.

“Pottery, inscriptions and artefacts recovered both inside and outside the complex testify to the strong bond existing between Tayma and the Nabataean Kingdom,” Lora concluded.

Jacqueline Studer from the Museum of Natural History in Geneva presented evidence dating to the Hellenistic and Nabataean periods which reveal ancient ritual practices. Animal remains excavated at the site of Madain Salih, “differ markedly when compared to bone assemblages from domestic contexts at the site”, she remarked.

“Not only is Area 9 distinguished by the presence of unusual species like raptors or large equids (extinct mammals that to which horses and zebras belong), but it contains evidence of an uncommon butchery practice on remains of caprines (extinct species of goats), particularly rams and dogs,” Studer emphasised.

Furthermore, the visual prominence of mortuary structures within the Nabataean capital city of Petra clearly indicates the deceased maintained a constant presence amongst the living, Megan Perry, an American scholar from East Carolina University claimed.

“However, current systematic archaeological exploration of these mortuary features documents a more intimate view of the interaction between the living and the dead,” Perry stressed.

Nabataeans had a habit of visiting their familial tombs which included ritual feasting and reorganisation of the mortuary space accompanied by the scents of incense, perfumed oils and quicklime, according to Perry.

Petra remains a mystical city but it served as a huge burial site. Pagan rituals were conducted on many of the ledges and hilltops within the city. 

Unaware of the real role of such places, visitors unknowingly pass by hilltops, where the dead were left to be exposed to the elements. In addition, mourners would leave behind material goods that served to illuminate, bedazzle and entertain the dead, said Perry. 

“Through this repeated exchange of sensory stimulation, the Nabataeans established and preserved a dynamic relationship with their deceased ancestors,” Perry concluded.

AMMAN — One teacher was injured after a student started hurling rocks at a Jerash school on Tuesday, Jordan Teachers Association said.

The 14-year-old student started throwing rocks after teachers stopped him from hitting another student, JTA Spokesperson Ayman Okour said. 

The JTA has recorded more than 39 assaults on teachers during the first half of 2015, with only 10 per cent of the cases referred to court, a sharp spike from the 25 cases recorded during the same period last year.

“The student is known as a troublemaker. He was transferred from the school in question after disciplinary action taken against him last year and came back to cause harm today,” he told The Jordan Times.

The injured teacher reported the incident, according to Okour, who reiterated the association’s calls on the government to shoulder its responsibilities in protecting educators.

“Stiffer penalties against assailants would definitely reduce such incidents,” he said.

Also on Tuesday, students at Jabbeh Secondary School for Boys attacked the car of a teacher and broke its windows. No injuries were reported, according to the JTA, which called for holding the assailants accountable. 

Firearms, clubs and cleavers have been used in the attacks, which sometimes took the  form of mob raids this year, according to the statement.

JTA President Hussam Masheh has previously claimed that the number of attacks during the first half of this year indicates that no one is seriously working to address the problem, which, he said, threatens the education institution in its entirety.

In May this year, the ministry filed a lawsuit against those Ramtha residents who assaulted teachers at Al Miqdad Bin Al Aswad School, injuring one of them, and condemned the continued attacks on teachers and educators.

AMMAN — Hotels in Jordanians’ favoured domestic tourism destination, Aqaba and the Dead Sea, were over 80 per cent booked on the eve of Eid Al Adha holiday, an official and a sector leader said Wednesday.

Although Eid Al Fitr, which fell around two months ago, was in the peak of the summer season, hotels’ occupancy rates in Aqaba over Eid Al Adha vacation are higher, said Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority (ASEZA) Deputy Chief Commissioner Yusuf Mansur.

He added that the average occupancy rates in Aqaba’s five-star hotels reached 90 per cent, while the figure was 80 per cent in three- and four-star hotels, noting that the majority of reservations were made for the first two days of the vacation, Thursday and Friday.

“This allows for new reservations on Saturday and Sunday,” he told The Jordan Times over the phone, citing three-star hotels as a preferred option for many families.

Mansur said prices in three-star hotels were as low as JD50-70 per night per in such a “high” season, while prices in five-star hotels exceeded JD200 per night.

He cited a need for more investments in three-star hotels in Aqaba, a more adequate option for a wide segment of society.

Furthermore, he highlighted a need for more “upper-middle income housing” investments for professionals, including lawyers, engineers and doctors, to encourage them to live and work in the city which is witnessing an increase in industrial investment projects.

For his part, Jordan Hotel Association (JHA) Executive Director Yasar Majali said occupancy rates before Eid Al Adha season were as low as 17 per cent in Aqaba and the Dead Sea.

“Now it has exceeded 80 per cent, with a majority of Jordanian visitors,” he said, noting that Petra is currently struggling with a “great challenge” concerning the number of overnight visitors.

He agreed with Mansur on the need for further investments in building three-star hotels in Aqaba and the Dead Sea, adding that most of the currently existing three-star hotels are away from the waterfront.

“Hotel rooms have to be available for Jordanians from all economic levels,” he concluded.

AMMAN — The Jordan Water Company (Miyahuna) said Wednesday it stopped pumping water from a well in Wadi Waleh that provides water to some areas in Madaba to take samples to test for drinkability.

Miyahuna said water pumping will resume once the tests meet the Jordanian standards, stressing the affected areas will receive water from Amman as usual during the stoppage.

AMMAN —Three persons died Wednesday in a collision involving a tanker and a car in Ghor Al Safi, according to the Civil Defence Department.

Meanwhile, a seven-year-old girl drowned in an agricultural pool in Jiza District, according to medics at Al Nadim Hospital in Madaba. On Tuesday night, a 45-year-old woman died when her vehicle overturned on a desert road in Karak.

Civil Defence Department (CDD) cadres took her body to Qatraneh Health Centre, the CDD said Wednesday.