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AMMAN — The Jordan Hashemite Charity Organisation (JHCO) on Sunday night dispatched four ambulances to Gaza, JHCO Secretary General Ayman Mifleh said Monday.

He added that the Professional Associations Complex donated two ambulances, the Applied Sciences University donated one for Al Shifa Hospital and the Palestinian-Turkish Businessmen Union donated an ambulance for Al Awda Hospital.

AMMAN — The USAID Jordan Local Enterprise Support Project (LENS) on Monday signed an agreement with the Land Transport Regulatory Commission (LTRC) to support the competitiveness and sustainability of micro and small enterprises (MSEs) in Jordan’s land transport sector, according to a USAID statement. Transport Minister Lina Shbeeb attended the signing ceremony.

The partnership will provide “hundreds of businesses” with the training and support necessary to meet new regulations passed by the LTRC in 2014, mandating that commercial vehicle drivers acquire new certification and safety tools to guarantee international safety standards, the statement said.

The partnership will also entail implementing a nationwide curriculum and a training of trainers programme aimed at helping MSEs respond to new regulations and acquire the necessary certifications. 

AMMAN — The majority of Jordanians see Iran as the number one beneficiary of the deal it has reached with the P5+1 group over its nuclear programme, according to a survey by the University of Jordan's Centre for Strategic Studies (CSS). 

Forty-six per cent of the respondents believed that Iran has benefited the most from the nuclear deal with the world powers while 25 per cent and 18 per cent believed that the US and Israel were the top beneficiaries from the agreement, respectively, the poll revealed.

The survey was conducted between August 5 and 11 on 900 males and 900 females picked randomly from 150 areas across the Kingdom, the CSS said.  

According to the pollsters, the survey was aimed to measure awareness of Jordanians about the Iran nuclear deal in terms of who benefited the most and the impact of this agreement on the regional conflicts in Syria, Iraq and Yemen.

As stated in the poll’s report, a copy of which was made available to The Jordan Times, 39 per cent of the respondents supported the agreement and 22 per cent opposed it, while 25 per cent of them lacked knowledge to support or oppose this agreement.

Forty-one per cent of the interviewees believed that the agreement would have a negative impact on the Kingdom while 29 per cent believed otherwise, according to the poll.

For 30 per cent of the respondents, the signing of the agreement would help alleviate Tehran's threat to the region compared with 15 per cent who believed that the nuclear agreement would not ease the Iranian danger.  

On the impact of the deal on the region's turmoil, 26 per cent believed that the Iran nuclear agreement with the P5+1 group would lead to aggravating the conflicts in Syria, Iraq and Yemen while 20 per cent of the respondents expressed hope that the deal would have a positive impact on settling the region's conflicts. 

AMMAN — Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh and French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius will co-chair a UN International Conference on the victims of attacks and abuses on ethnic or religious grounds in the Middle East, which will be held in Paris on September 8. 

More than 100 world leading figures, including ministers of foreign affairs, Muslim and Christian clergymen, parliamentarians and media representatives will attend the conference, which will discuss ways to boost tolerance, protect and assist people whose safety and identity is endangered. 

At a debate that was launched by the UN Security Council on the subject in March, the council decided to hold  an international conference to discuss the issue of minorities persecuted by terror groups, mainly Daesh.

As Jordan is seen as a model of peaceful coexistence which encourages interfaith dialogue, it was decided that the conference will be co-chaired by Jordan and France. 

Some 60 nations will be represented at the conference, including several countries from the Middle East, as well as a wide range of NGOs and UN agencies. 

AMMAN — Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour on Sunday paid an unannounced visit to the Income and Sales Tax Department's (ISTD) northern Amman branch and checked on the work progress at the agency and services it provides to investors in terms of tax assessment and collection. 

Ensour talked to people who happened to be at department, estimated between 300 to 500 visitors a day, and listened to their remarks and suggestions to improve the quality of services at the facility, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

He called for applying whatever procedures that can facilitate investors' work, and paying more attention to their cases at the department, in addition to reducing time and effort needed to complete their transactions. 

The premier also stressed the importance of completing the electronic interconnectivity project between ISTD and partner institutions to provide access to updated information related to cases the department deals with. 

Touring the department’s archive section, Ensour called for filing the tens of thousands of  files in a way that guarantees a speedy retrieval and ease of access, and at the same time, maintains the confidentiality of information, Petra added. 

He also called for paying more attention to the fire alarm system in the archive section to ensure the necessary protection for the important documents kept there.

Mohammad Zu’bi, the branch manager, said the branch serves investors and citizens regardless of their places of residence, thanks to the electronic connection between ISTD directorates in the Kingdom, according to Petra.

On December 23, the Cabinet decided to waive fines on unpaid taxes and fees if taxpayers settled their unpaid dues to the tax department, the Jordan Customs Department, municipalities, public universities and the Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority.

Exemptions were 100 per cent in the first three months of the year, and went down to 75 per cent in the second quarter.

Starting July 1 and until the end of September, the fines drop by 50 per cent, while the percentage will go down to 25 per cent between October and December.

The move is aimed at encouraging taxpayers to settle their dues and to generate more revenues for the Treasury, according to a previous statement by ISTD Spokesperson Musa Tarawneh.

Earlier this month, Ensour paid a similar visit to a Department of  Land and Survey branch in west Amman, also as agency concerned with serving investors, amid efforts and personal attention by His Majesty King Abdullah to improve the investment climate in Jordan. 

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah on Sunday said that the issue of festive firing will be seriously dealt with and measures will be taken to end this phenomenon. 

Stressing that no one is above the law, the King said: "Even if it were my son who is shooting…I would ask security bodies to take the same measures against him".

The King noted he saw the video that went viral online few days ago showing a child killed by mistake while a man was reloading his gun at a wedding reception, stressing that this must not be allowed to happen.

"From now on, we will take all measures against anyone who uses arms at occasions and celebrations and we will not allow festive firing to kill another child." 

Security bodies in the different governorates should see to this, he said, pointing out that it is a red line for him.  

Receiving Amman dignitaries, leading figures and military veterans at the Royal Court, the King said: "I am very proud of this meeting where I meet today with many of my friends," pointing out that he has served with many of the ex-servicemen in the Special Forces. 

The meeting came in line with the King's ongoing efforts to maintain contact with Jordanians in the various governorates, according to a Royal Court statement. 

On other domestic issues, the King said: “I have always been saying that economic and social challenges are a priority, especially combating poverty and unemployment, and today, we are considering ways to work with the government to improve these conditions, attract investments to the country and increase job opportunities for citizens.”

“I will visit China next week to pave the way for investments in different projects,” the Monarch added. 

The King said challenges lie in the services sector, transport, traffic, environment, medical services and pressures on schools, pointing out that the Royal Court supports both the RMS and schools.

The King noted that there is need to focus on east Amman and the development of the Madouna area through coordination between the government and the armed forces. 

“I am optimistic and I have all confidence in the armed forces and security bodies,” the King reiterated, requesting MPs to assist the government in providing conditions conducive for drawing investments to provide jobs for citizens.

The King thanked the Parliament for completing the decentralisation bill, pointing out that there is still a lot of political work ahead of the next elections. 

His Majesty stressed his support for all Jordanians, noting that he will hopefully visit the various areas in east Amman and different parts of the Kingdom.

Regarding the political scene, King Abdullah said Jordan’s relations with Arab countries are very strong, pointing out that there is strong coordination with Arab leaders regarding the situation in Syria and Iraq. 

Highlighting his recent visit to Russia, he said the Russian leadership expressed readiness to help arrive at a political solution for the Syrian crisis, and “hopefully a settlement will be reached as soon as possible.”

Despite the political developments in the two neighbouring countries, the issues on the ground still need more time to be addressed, the King told the attendees. 

As for Jordan, he said: “It is eventually our duty to protect our borders and our people,” the King noted. 

At the meeting, Royal Court Chief Fayez Tarawneh noted in his remarks that the King directed the Royal Court to implement several initiatives to build schools and help the government solve the problem of the two shifts that some schools have to apply due to the increasing number of students, especially with the influx of refugees from Syria. 

The King ordered that two King Abdullah Schools for Distinction be built in east and southern Amman in Qweismeh and Sahab, Tarawneh said. 

To support vocational education and meet the needs of the labour market, the King also ordered that a second school building for Prince Zeid Bin Shaker School be constructed, in addition to setting up a vocational school in Naour and a centre for persons with disabilities in Sahab.

Furthermore, Tarawneh said the King’s directives included the establishment of seven new public parks and developing the existing ones, especially in the areas of Qweismeh, Abu Alanda, Ras Al Ain, Yarmouk, Tareq, Marka and Al Hashemi Al Shamali, in coordination with the Greater Amman Municipality.   

In remarks at the meeting, King’s Military Adviser and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs-of-Staff Gen. Mashal Al Zaben said His Majesty, the Supreme Commander of the Jordan Armed Forces-Arab Army, issued directives on setting up a new building for the army’s headquarters in Naour and on establishing army housing units and a school complex to serve the families of army servicemen in east Amman.  

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah on Sunday met with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas over process in efforts to revive Middle East peace negotiations, according to a Royal Court statement. 

During the meeting at the Royal Court, His Majesty said Jordan would continue exerting all possible efforts in coordination with regional and international stakeholders to remove obstacles facing the relaunch of peace negotiations.

He said Jordan will do its utmost to support Palestinians and help them achieve national unity and solidarity.

In regard to the situation in Jerusalem, His Majesty renewed Jordan's condemnation of Israeli policies and measures and the frequent violations against the city's holy sites.

He said the Kingdom would continue its role in protecting Islamic and Christian shrines to preserve Jerusalem's Arab identity.

For his part, Abbas briefed King Abdullah on the results of his meetings with regional and world leaders with whom he has discussed endeavours to revive peace negotiations and achieve the Palestinians' vision of establishing their independent state.

The Palestinian president commended Jordan’s efforts in supporting Palestinians.

The meeting was attended by Royal Court Chief Fayez Tarawneh, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh, King’s National Security Adviser and General Intelligence Department Director Gen. Faisal Shobaki, King’s Office Director Jafar Hassan and the delegates accompanying Abbas.

In a statement to the Jordan News Agency, Petra, after the meeting, Abbas said that meeting King Abdullah is part of continuous communication and coordination to discuss Arab, regional and international causes, especially after His Majesty’s visit to Moscow.

AMMAN — Her Majesty Queen Rania joined a group of orphans from the King Hussein Charity Society for Orphans on Sunday in a group cooking class at Beit Sitti Restaurant in Amman’s Jabal Luweibdeh area.

Upon arrival, Her Majesty met with Dina, Maria and Tania Haddad, and their mother, Shireen Haddad, owners of Beit Sitti, according to a statement from her office. 

The Queen also toured the restaurant and listened to a briefing from the owners about the idea behind it.

In a conversation with the Queen, the children said they have never been to Aqaba, at which point Queen Rania promised to arrange for them to visit soon.

Beit Sitti started in 2010 when three sisters collaborated to keep their grandmothers’ heritage alive by passing on the recipes that she taught them to locals, expatriates and tourists. 

Patrons learn to cook a four-course Arabic meal which they later enjoy in an informal sitting.

Founded in Irbid in 1968, the King Hussein Charity Society for Orphans is currently home to 36 children. A large number of these children are either orphans or come from broken homes and impoverished families.

AMMAN — Monday marks Her Majesty Queen Rania’s birthday. 

Over the past year, the Queen, an outspoken advocate for education in Jordan and around the world, and a promoter of peace and coexistence, continued to reach out with a message of understanding and tolerance across the world and media platforms, according to a statement from her office.

At the Abu Dhabi Media Summit in November of 2014, Queen Rania spoke out on behalf of Islam and the Arab world, addressing more than 500 leaders in the media industry from around the globe. 

Her speech carried a clear message: The Arab world must reclaim its narrative from extremist groups in the region.

“A minority of irreligious extremists is using social media to rewrite our narrative… hijack our identity and rebrand us.”

With images of violence and destruction from the Arab world projected on a screen behind her, Her Majesty insisted that these images do not represent the vast majority of Arabs and Muslims. 

She urged industry leaders and individuals from the across the region to rewrite the narrative by speaking up about who we are and what we stand for: instead of hate, tolerance, and instead of destruction, to emphasise a region rich in potential, individuality and ambition.

“We can spend our lives letting others dictate our narrative… and cast ourselves as the victims. Or we can realise the truth: that we are the creators of our own story. For the sake of each one of us…for Islam and the Arab world… for the future of our young people.”

2015 was a year of mourning for Jordan over the death of air force pilot Captain Muath Kasasbeh, who was killed by the Daesh terror group. 

To honour his memory, Queen Rania joined thousands of Jordanians in downtown Amman after Friday noon prayers in a communal unity march to honour his memory.

Speaking briefly to the BBC during the march, Her Majesty insisted that Jordanians were united, not only in their grief, but in their rejection of extremism. 

“Today I am just like every other Jordanian. We’re all united in our horror, in our grief, in what we saw. Through their heinous acts, I think they’re trying to frighten Jordanians, but all they did is make us angry and united, and very determined to rid this world of this evil… This is not Islam; we have to reclaim our religion from these people.”

Earlier this year, during a special Q&A session in London with Arianna Huffington, editor in chief of The Huffington Post, Queen Rania reaffirmed that there is nothing Islamic about the self-proclaimed “Islamic State”.

“They have nothing to do with faith and everything to do with fanaticism… What the extremists want is to divide our world along fault lines of religion and culture.”

Her Majesty also utilised her global reach to advocate for young people, in Jordan and across the Arab world.

Earlier this year, the Queen, a member of the UN chief’s high-level advisory panel on the Post-2015 Development Agenda, also joined fellow members along with several high-profile activists in addressing a letter to world leaders, urging them to create positive change in the world in order to secure a better and safer future for all.

In addition to all this, she has been an outspoken advocate for children’s rights. Following this year’s tragedies, she spoke out against the targeting of children, including the Yemeni school bus attack and an attack in Pakistan that took the lives of 132 children, as well as Nigeria’s kidnapped girls.

On December 17, 2014, Her Majesty condemned these attacks in an op-ed for the Huffington Post titled “Extremism’s Innocent Victims: Children and Islam”. 

“These atrocities are difficult for us to process; they’re simply incomprehensible. I don’t have answers; I only have questions. When did children become legitimate targets for radicals? When did global human rights treaties designed to protect children cease to matter? When did a child’s safe return from school each day become something to celebrate? And until when will children pay the price of extremism?”

In another op-ed  — “What Good Is Technological Progress without Moral Progress?” — Her Majesty discussed the juxtaposition of large strides in technological advancement with global moral downfall. 

She talked about the flat value of technological progress if it cannot be enjoyed by everyone in the world.

“Somewhere in our fast-paced world, crammed full of the latest gadgets, the alleged hallmarks of ‘progress’, too many people have forgotten the values on which our global family is built,” the Queen wrote.

At home, Her Majesty continued to oversee and support education efforts in Jordan, from school renovations, the development of healthier schools, and better teacher training, to learning outcomes in general. 

This year, she inaugurated the Teachers Skills Forum, which aims to address the most pressing needs of the educational sector in the Arab world.

Her Majesty stressed that teachers are at the heart of the educational process, and that investing in them and their training is a top priority. 

Addressing teachers at the forum, she said, “You need to constantly broaden your knowledge, adopt new techniques that are better suited for this day and age, and be fully aware of what influences your students.”

On a more personal note, throughout the past year, Her Majesty shared several insights into her personal and family life through social media platforms.

Commenting on her use of social media in an interview with Mashable this March, the Queen mentioned social media’s power to connect people across borders.

“I hope to reach people who care about change, people who are not afraid to step out of the comfort of the familiar who want to see and strengthen the universal threads and common experiences that connect us — irrespective of age or geography.”

AMMAN — The lack of a motorcycle-friendly culture in Amman prompts some motorcyclists to use loud exhaust systems instead of horns for safety purposes, according to a field expert.

The Royal Motorcycle Club of Jordan advises motorcyclists to use “loud” horns for warning purposes instead of exhausts that make loud noises when pressing the fuel pedal, the club’s general manager, Omar Zarour, told The Jordan Times.

Installing a device in the exhaust system to generate loud noise is against regulations, according to Public Security Department (PSD) Spokesperson Lt. Col. Amer Sartawi, who noted that the traffic department penalises violating motorcyclists.

Zarour said that motorists sometimes do not see the motorcycles and tend to “annoy” drivers by getting too close or racing them “intentionally or unintentionally”.

“Motorcyclists are more likely to be injured in accidents,” he said, adding that bikers are advised at all times to wear helmets and protective armour in addition to reflective vests at night.

The motorcyclist noted that scooters and motorcycles are treated by the Traffic Law like all other vehicles, noting that sport motorcycles are not allowed in Jordan.

Any individual over 18 carrying a first category driving license can apply to the Jordan Traffic Institute to register a motorcycle or a scooter, Zarour said.

He added that the club is licensed from the PSD to train drivers, following the standards of the Motorcycle Safety Foundation, and issue certifications that allow them to undergo the driving test.

There are over 3,000 registered drivers of motorcycles with engines above 250cc, Zarour said, adding that information on the number of registered scooter drivers in not available.

Sartawi said there are around 3,000 motorcycles in Jordan.

Hassan Amoudi, who lives on a main street in Amman’s Jabal Hussein neighbourhood, said motorcycle noises get “very loud” sometimes.

He added that authorities should further monitor these “violations” as well as loud car horns, as they are a source of pollution.

Muna Darwazeh, a resident of the Abdoun neighbourhood, said it gets “annoying” when groups of bikers gather close to her house to start a group ride.
“But I understand motorcyclists’ need for loud warning tools while driving to get noticed by cars,” she told The Jordan Times over the phone.