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AMMAN — The Soviet Universities Alumni Club “Ibn Sina”, in cooperation with the Jordanian-Russian Friendship Society and the Russian Cultural Centre, on Saturday celebrated the passage of 52 years since the beginning of Jordanian-Russian diplomatic relations.

During the celebration, attended by diplomats and Russian university graduates, former interior minister Mazen Saket spoke about progress in bilateral cooperation. Russian Ambassador to Jordan Boris Bolotin said bilateral ties are developing, thanks to efforts exerted in this regard by His Majesty King Abdullah and Russian President Vladimir Putin, and their endeavours to help resolve conflicts in the region. 

AMMAN — Some 864 women have obtained licences that allow them to drive public transport vehicles, according to Drivers and Vehicles Licensing Department statistics.

Obtaining the licence does not necessarily mean using it for a job, but it is still a right for males and females alike, according to Brig. Gen. Ahmad Al Kafawin, director of the department. 

MADABA — Madaba Governor Mohammad Smeiran on Friday said he has formed field committees that will be working during the Eid Al Adha holiday to prevent any violations against state lands in various parts of the governorate.

The committees will continue to conduct inspection visits to detect any trespassing and take legal measures against violators, Smeiran stressed.

AMMAN — Industry, Trade and Supply Minister Maha Ali has met with importers and traders of livestock, whose merchandise is hihghly demanded ahead of Eid Al Adha, or the sacrifice feast, which marks the end of the pilgrimage season, a ministry statement said Saturday.

Ali urged the traders to make slaughter animals available at affordable prices to consumers so that as many as possible can perform the ritual, which involves slaughtering sheep, cattle and camels, and distribute meat to poor families. 

AMMAN — A woman died and nine were injured on Saturday in a two-vehicle-collision in Zarqa, according to the Civil Defence Department (CDD).

CDD cadres administered first aid to the injured and took them to hospitals, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

Meanwhile, two Egyptian workers died on Saturday after piles of soil fell on them while they were digging and drilling as part of a sewerage project in Ain Al Basha, according to the Civil Defence Department.

Balqa CDD cadres managed to remove the rubble, remove the workers and administer first aid to them. The two men were pronounced dead upon arrival at Prince Hussein Public Hospital.

AMMAN — Members of the Jordanian National Campaign to Thwart the Gas Deal with the Zionist Entity on Saturday said they will carry on with their activities until the gas deal is completely cancelled, according to a campaign statement sent to The Jordan Times.

Campaign members expressed “shock” that the government is not taking any action to cancel the deal, which has not been finalised yet, while the Zionists’ violations are continuing against the Palestinians.

In the statement, campaigners called for the withdrawal of Israel’s ambassador from Jordan and the cancellation of the Wadi Araba peace agreement with Israel, pointing out that through the gas deal, Jordanians’ money will go to Israel’s treasury and fund its army and acts of aggression.

AMMAN — Bashir Qaseer, head of the Health Ministry’s primary health directorate, on Saturday said all six patients who have been diagnosed with Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) coronavirus-related infection were treated and discharged.

The latest of these cases was an eight-month old child who was suffering from acute lung inflammation, the official said. Eleven cases of MERS have been registered this year, six of whom recovered, Qaseer said, stressing the ministry’s ongoing efforts to detect all cases of acute respiratory problems through hospitals and health centres.

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah has intensified Jordan's efforts to counter the Israeli aggression on Al Aqsa Mosque and discussed the recent clashes with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey over the phone Thursday, a Royal Court statement said. 

They agreed on the need for more coordination among Islamic states to end violations and to stand up to Israeli attempts to Judaise holy sites in occupied Jerusalem.

The two leaders also called on the international community to place pressure on Israel to halt its acts of aggression. 

The phone conversation was one of a series of contacts King Abdullah has made to drum up support from the international community for Jordan's position to defend Jerusalem and its holy sites. 

His Majesty has spoken to US Vice President Joe Biden, European Parliament President Martin Schulz, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi and Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani. 

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour also chastised Israel for its aggression targeting Al Aqsa Mosque and Muslim worshippers there.

“The recent Israeli acts of aggression against Al Aqsa Mosque and Al Haram Al Sharif contradict the Israeli government’s pledges, not only those that are part of the Jordanian-Israeli peace treaty, but also those made at international meetings,” Ensour said.

The premier was speaking during a meeting Thursday with Interior Minister Salameh Hammad, Minister of State for Media Affairs and Communications Mohammad Momani, governors and directors of security bodies at the Interior Ministry to address Arab concerns of the recent skirmish in Jerusalem. 

Israeli forces stormed the mosque on Sunday morning, firing rubber-coated bullets and stun grenades, thus injuring people inside, according to reports. 

“Israel realises that such acts of aggression pose danger to the region and to the Palestinian-Israeli peace process,” Ensour said during the Interior Ministry meeting. 

The prime minister focused on peaceful Palestinian-Israeli relations that are hindered by violent conflicts, especially at a place like Al Aqsa Mosque, “which is under Hashemite custodianship,” he said. 

“The recent provocations should not have taken place,” Ensour said.

AMMAN — Her Majesty Queen Rania on Thursday received the Walther Rathenau Prize in recognition of her work as an outstanding advocate for peace and understanding between East and West. 

She was presented the award by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, and dedicated it to the people of Jordan, Her Majersty’s office said in a statement. 

The ceremony was held at the Federal Foreign Office in Berlin, and was attended by over 400 influential figures in politics, media, civil society and business. 

“I am humbled to accept this prize. And I do so on behalf of the people of Jordan who, everyday, through their words and actions, demonstrate the values that defined the life of Walther Rathenau, values such as courage and compassion, equality and understanding, tolerance and mutual respect. In other words, basic human decency,” she said in her acceptance speech at the ceremony.

The Queen conveyed the pressing need for empathy and compassion, or “basic human decency”, to awaken on a global level in response to the growing crisis of refugees and unnecessary suffering that prevails around the world today.

Queen Rania voiced appreciation of the people of Germany’s humanitarian contributions and relief efforts for those in need, particularly Syrian refugees.

“The people of Germany are imaging what the refugees have endured and what they have lost.”

She underlined the ability and power of imagination, combined with the willingness to understand the exhaustion, anxiety, and bewilderment that refugees might feel following their perilous journeys, to rally one’s instinct to help.

Her Majesty also described the considerable effort that Jordan has committed to, receiving 1.4 million Syrians in Jordan, amounting to 20 per cent of the population. Queen Rania recognised that, in addition to asylum and access to services like health and education, stood the individual acts of generosity, pointing to the “countless acts of kindness” that have been a part of the response. 

All this, Her Majesty insisted, “despite the fact, that we’re burdened by poverty and unemployment.” She noted, “We do our best with what we have. And I could not be more proud of the selflessness and kindness of Jordanians.”

Queen Rania called  for a more empathetic “global family” in the speech. 

“Without compassion, we weaken the very foundations of our common humanity,” and pointing to the hyper-connectivity of our globalised world, she maintained that “basic human decency is the strongest currency our global family has.”

After conveying the values that underpin global citizenship, Her Majesty continued to highlight the forces working against these ideals, among them, destructive and misleading language like the words used in headlines, hashtags, and sound bites that run through social media.

The interchangeability of “migrant” and “refugee” was one example of this violation that does not differentiate between the migrant’s agency and the refugee’s powerlessness, she noted.

Referring to refugees, “They are entitled, under international law” Queen Rania reminded her audience, “to protection and asylum. To justice and dignity”.

In the same way, she continued, the misuse and false matching of “Muslim” and “extremist” have caused similar and even vilified misunderstandings —“One is a follower of Islam”, she said, “my beloved religion of peace, compassion and understanding”. The other, “irreligious, evil and has no regard for the sanctity of human life.”

Referring to the current debate on refugees, Queen Rania added, “Rather than evoke an unprecedented tide of human kindness, some segments of society have, instead, unleashed a new and ugly lexicon in our newsfeeds.”

Her Majesty highlighted the power of language to influence the thoughts, actions and prejudices of people; and in that way, its ability to sometimes fuel suspicion, intolerance and fear, build walls and feed into “a downward spiral of mistrust and miscommunication.”

Instead of being limited by labels, Queen Rania encouraged her audience to “look beyond” them, beyond names, and beyond stereotypes, and discover the basic humanity that joins people and unites them in their common needs and aspirations. 

“Let it remind us that no matter where we come from… how we dress... or what language we speak, who we worship or how we got here, that, in the end, we share the same dreams and want the same things.”

To find a sustainable solution to the problem, Queen Rania said that it must also be viewed from the vantage point of Europeans and stressed that much of the unfortunate reactions that have emerged towards refugees find their roots “not out of malice but out of fear of the unknown.” Here, Queen Rania said, is where much work remains to be done to dislodge prejudice and, using language and actions based in basic human decency, approach the crisis as an opportunity for the global community to forge a greater collective response.

“Today, we face a crisis of exceptional magnitude. One that demands exceptional solutions.”

These solutions, Queen Rania maintained, require creativity, expanded vision, and open hearts. Building on that foundation, “Let us all imagine a sustainable solution to the crisis we face today,” she said.

The Walther Rathenau Prize has been presented annually since 2008 to honor outstanding personalities who have made remarkable contributions to international politics and dialogue. It commemorates a foreign minister of Germany who was killed by opposition who rejected his foreign policy of reconciliation.

While presenting the prize to Her Majesty, Chancellor Merkel called Her Majesty a “bridge builder”, highlighting her work in building bridges between cultures and describing her as a shining role model who deserves worldwide recognition.

The Chancellor continued to say that Her Majesty’s work encourages dialogue, empowers women, reforms education, protects children, and empowers and prepares youth for the labour market.

Chancellor Merkel, also, praised Jordan’s humanitarian efforts in addressing the refugee crisis and described Jordan as a safe haven and a sanctuary in an unstable region.

Earlier at the ceremony, Werner Hoyer, Chairman of the Walther Rathenau Institute, also said that he was honoured to welcome Her Majesty, who raised her voice courageously above cultural boundaries and advocated for better education and for tolerance, especially for the young generation, and her voice is internationally heard.

Prior to the ceremony, Queen Rania had also met with Gerd Müller, German minister of economic cooperation and development, and discussed with him areas of cooperation between the two nations.

During her stay in Berlin, Her Majesty attended part of the G7 Forum for Dialogue with Women from politics, business and civil society, hosted by Chancellor Merkel, to discuss the empowerment of women and girls worldwide. The Queen also visited Fab Lab Berlin, an open digital fabrication studio that seeks to train the public on machine-related skills, linking craft-making with technology.

AMMAN — Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour on Thursday stressed that the rule of  the law and the supremacy of state authority are  the main characteristics of the current stage.

Ensour underlined that the time that state assets where under assault is over, noting that there are no more "protected hotbeds" which see themselves above the law. "The motto of this stage is that ‘No one is above the law’,” he declared.

Meeting with governors and directors of security bodies on Thursday, Ensour said that the Kingdom is approaching a comprehensive reform process rested on the restoration of stability, the state prestige and the rule of the law, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

He also said that tremendous efforts have been exerted lately to put an end to the rioting, chaos and the decades-long phenomenon of “assaulting the state's assets” everywhere across the Kingdom, adding: "That period, which cost billions of JDs, is over."

The premier explained that the Ministry of Interior and its affiliated bodies are working according to a unified plan aiming at asserting the state authority which begins with enhancing the social security and protecting lives, properties and the economy, Petra reported.

He also called on governors to be “bold and courageous” in exercising their power so that the state authority can be restored, stressing that firmness in implementing decisions should be according to principles of justice and transparency before anything else, according Petra. 

Ensour presented a briefing on the political reforms which have been achieved recently, culminating in the endorsement of reform-oriented pieces of legislation.

The premier also said that the 2015 draft parliamentary elections law has been well received by the Lower House, Petra reported.

Interior Minister Salameh Hammad stressed that there will be no “leniency or retreat” in imposing the state authority, saying there will be no prejudice and favouritism in enforcing the law, according to Petra.