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AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah on Wednesday returned home after concluding a three-day visit to Russia, a Royal Court statement said.

Before his return to the Kingdom, His Majesty met with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi on the sidelines of the visit, and discussed bilateral relations and regional developments of mutual interest.

His Majesty renewed Jordan's support for Egypt, while Sisi commended such a stand, which, he said, “reflects the deep historical relations between the two countries,” according to a Royal Court statement.

Sisi also hailed the efforts Jordan is exerting  in defence of Arab causes through its membership of the UN Security Council.

The two leaders agreed on concerted international efforts, including Arab and Islamic nations, to combat terrorism, extremism, and terrorist groups.

They also highlighted the importance of finding a comprehensive political solution to the Syrian crisis and preserve Syrian territorial integrity. 

His Majesty and Sisi stressed the importance of intensifying efforts to resume the Palestinian-Israeli negotiations. 

Talks also focused on ways to support official Libyan institutions and enhance efforts to achieve security and stability in Libya.

The two leaders renewed support for the Iraqi government and its efforts to address challenges facing Iraq and bring about security and stability. 

The meeting was attended by HRH Prince Feisal, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh, King’s Military Adviser and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs-of-Staff Gen. Mashal Al Zaben, King’s National Security Adviser and General Intelligence Department Director Gen. Faisal Shobaki, King’s Office Director Jafar Hassan and Rapporteur of the National Policies Council Abdullah Wreikat.

On the Egyptian side, a number of senior officials attended the meeting.

During the official visit to Moscow, His Majesty on Tuesday met with Russian President Vladimir Putin and discussed bilateral relations as well as regional and international developments. 

During the meeting at the Kremlin, the King and Putin discussed bilateral cooperation, joint economic projects, especially in the field of energy and Jordan’s intent to  benefit from Russian expertise in this regard. 

At the regional and international levels, the two leaders discussed progress in the  terror response and other developments in regional countries.

His Majesty also attended the International Aviation and Space Show (MAKS) hosted by Russia’s Zhukovsky city where he and Putin, along with heads of delegations watched air shows performed by Russian airplanes. 

The two leaders toured MAKS and were briefed by specialists on the most advanced technologies produced by Russian companies in the field of military air defence.

On the sidelines of the show, His Majesty met with Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who is also the deputy supreme commander of the UAE Armed Forces, and discussed cooperation between the two countries in most fields as well as recent regional developments. 

AMMAN — Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour met with senior Swedish officials on Tuesday and discussed ways to boost the Jordanian-Swedish relations, along with the latest regional developments. 

During separate meetings with Speaker of the Swedish Parliament Urban Ahlin and Sweden’s Foreign Minister Margot Wallström, the premier outlined progress in Jordan’s drive to achieve social, economic and political reform. 

Regarding the current regional developments, especially the crisis in Syria, he re-asserted Jordan’s position in support of a political solution to end the bloodshed there.

The premier highlighted the repercussions of the crisis in Syria on Jordan and the immense pressures placed on the country as a result of the high influx of Syrian refugees into the Kingdom.   

With regard to the Palestinian issue, Ensour stressed that the Palestinian question is the region’s central issue, pointing out that unless a just and a viable solution is reached, regional stability would remain at stake. 

Ensour expressed Jordan’s appreciation of Sweden’s support of the Palestinians’ pursuit of independence.

In 2014, Sweden became the first EU member state to recognise the State of Palestine. 

The premier also underscored Jordan’s efforts led by His Majesty King Abdullah to clarify the true image of Islam as a faith of tolerance and moderation.  

Ahlin expressed his appreciation of Jordan’s efforts to achieve peace and regional stability at his meeting with Ensour.

Ensour also met with Sweden’s Minister for International Development Cooperation Isabella Lovin and discussed with her ways to boost Jordanian-Swedish cooperation in various fields.

The premier highlighted Jordan’s desire to benefit from Swedish technical expertise in the implementation of the Red Sea-Dead Sea Water Conveyance Project, in addition to the posibility of supporting other strategic projects that the Kingdom is planning to carry out in the fields of water or renewable energy. 

He underscored the government’s efforts to support and empower women and young people, highlighting HRH Crown Prince Hussein’s address at the inauguration of the Global Forum on Youth, Peace and Security in which the Crown Prince pointed out that the young are the most precious asset of nations.  

Lovin said she understood the burdens borne by Jordan as a result of the crisis in Syria and commended Jordan’s systematic approach in dealing with the Syrian refugees. 

She stressed Sweden’s interest in increasing its cooperation with Jordan and its readiness to assist it with its development projects. 

The premier, who arrived in Stockholm earlier this week to participate in World Water Week, was scheduled to attend the Stockholm Water Prize ceremony on Wednesday which will be held under the patronage of the King and Queen of Sweden.  

Celebrating its 25th year, the Stockholm Water Prize is the world’s most respected award for outstanding water achievements, according to the award’s website. 

The prize honours “individuals, organisations and institutions whose work contributes to the conservation and protection of water resources, and to the well-being of the planet and its inhabitants”.

AMMAN – Jordan is willing to be part of any regional coalition against terror, Minister of State for Media Affairs and Communications and Government Spokesperson Mohammad Momani said Wednesday. 

He was responding to The Jordan Times’ request for comment on remarks by Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu that Turkey and the US will soon launch "comprehensive" air operations to flush Daesh fighters from a zone in northern Syria bordering Turkey and that Jordan may take part in the operations.

Momani said that Kingdom is already part of the anti-Daesh coalition, where it is an active member and continues to be involved “under any capacity” to help defeat terrorism. 

The Turkish official told Reuters that Jordan is among other regional allies, including Saudi Arabia and Qatar, while Britain and France may join the fight against Daesh in northern Syria. 

He said that talks between Ankara and Washington were completed on Sunday and soon “we will start comprehensive operations against Daesh”.
The US and Turkey plan to provide air cover for what Washington judges to be moderate Syrian rebels as part of the operations which aim to remove Daesh from a rectangle of border territory roughly 80 kilometres long, officials familiar with the plans told Reuters. 

AMMAN — Jordan on Tuesday condemned the Israeli decision to close some gates of Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem in the face of worshippers, allowing extremist settlers to storm the mosque under the protection of the occupation forces.

Meanwhile, the government announced that it has appointed new guards to help safeguard the site, which is Islam’s third holiest shrine after Mecca’s Grand Mosque and the Prophet’s Mosque in Medina.

Minister of State for Media Affairs and Communications and Government Spokesperson Mohammad Momani said the Kingdom rejects the Israeli measures, describing them part of the continuous attempts to change reality in the holy shrine in violation of international laws.

He demanded commitment to the outcome of the November 2014 meeting between His Majesty King Abdullah, Secretary of State John Kerry and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, when it was agreed to keep the situation without change in East Jerusalem’s sacred places.

The minister announced that Jordan has hired 52 new employees and guards, through the Awqaf and Islamic Affairs Ministry, and noted that an advertisement was published to appoint 70 others, whose recruitment procedures will be completed soon.

The Awqaf Ministry’s plan is to increase the Jerusalem Awqaf Department's staff members from 850 to over 1,000, the minister, Hayel Dawood, told The Jordan Times on Wednesday.

A total of 300 of the current 850 employees at the department are guards, Dawood said, noting that each staff member costs Jordan JD20,000 annually.

The minister added that the plan is aimed at curbing the frequent storming of Al Aqsa Mosque by Jewish extremists, stressing that it is in line with the Hashemite custodianship over Jerusalem’s Muslim and Christian holy sites. 

Ahmad Ezzat, the ministry’s spokesperson, told The Jordan Times that the plan entails increasing Al Aqsa Mosque’s guards from 300 to 500 with the aim of enhancing the safety and security of the mosque and worshippers amidst increasing raids of the mosque’s courtyards by Israeli forces and radical Jewish settlers that usually result in clashes with Muslim worshippers.

The ministry started the implementation of the plan following a petition signed by dozens of MPs calling for the increase of safety measures at Al Aqsa Mosque.

According to the official, the guards’ salaries and all costs are covered by the ministry. 

In 2013, Jordan and Palestine signed an agreement under which the Palestinian side reaffirmed the status of His Majesty King Abdullah as the custodian of the holy sites in Jerusalem.

The agreement, Royal Court said then, would help Jordan and Palestine exert all efforts to protect Jerusalem and its holy sites from Israeli escalatory measures and Judaisation policy and safeguard hundreds of waqf properties that are endowed to Al Aqsa Mosque.

Under the deal, King Abdullah enjoys the “full right to exert all legal efforts to safeguard and preserve [Jerusalem’s holy sites], especially Al Aqsa Mosque, defined as the entire Al Haram Al Sharif compound (or the noble sanctuary whose area is estimated at 144 dunums).

The agreement “also reaffirms the historic principles upon which Jordan and Palestine are in agreement as regards Jerusalem and their common goal of defending Jerusalem together, especially at such a critical time, when the city is facing dramatic challenges and daily illegal changes to its authenticity and original identity”.

The two sides also reasserted the status of East Jerusalem as a “Palestinian sovereign occupied territory, and that all post-1967 occupation practices or aggressions against Jerusalem are not recognised by any international or legal entity”. 

Jordan’s guardianship of Jerusalem’s shrines is also provided for in the treaty the Kingdom signed with Israel in 1994.

AMMAN — The Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature (RSCN) launched on Wednesday the graduate level Protected Area Distance Education Programme to qualify professionals in ecosystem protection and the management of the region’s biodiversity.

The programme was designed in partnership with the US Forest Service and the University of Montana, according to the RSCN.

RSCN Director General Yehya Khaled underscored the importance of the programme, noting that the region lacks training and education programmes on the management and sustainability of protected areas.

Khaled highlighted that the courses offered by the programme will be taught at the RSCN’s Royal Academy for Nature Conservation, located in Ajloun Governorate, some 70km northwest of the capital.

“The Royal academy will offer students from the region the chance to study the management of protected areas in Ajloun instead of travelling abroad,” Khaled said.

Mohammad Zarour, head of RSCN’s strategic development, said during the launch that students who complete the courses offered by the programme will be capable of managing nature reserves.

The programme will offer five different courses: foundations of protected area management; protected area planning in an era of turbulence and complexity; tourism and protected area management: striving for sustainability; global ecology, conservation and natural resource management in a changing world; and field experience/research is also required, according to the RSCN.

The University of Montana will award students who successfully complete requirements of the graduate level courses a graduate certificate in protected area management.

Registration will be available though the Wildreness Institute of the University of Montana at (http://www.cfc.umt.edu/wi/), according to the RSCN.

AMMAN — The Interior Ministry has prepared a new draft law on weapons and ammunition, and sent it to the Legislation and Opinion Bureau, to stiffen penalties against those who fire bullets for no legal reason, Interior Minister Salameh Hammad said Wednesday.

The new draft law comes at a time when the phenomenon of festive firing at weddings and social events has reached a limit that cannot be overlooked without taking legal, social, educational and religious measures to uproot it, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

Moreover, Hammad said the bill aims at prohibiting licensing automated weapons and introduces new regulations for owning and carrying weapons. 

He said the draft law will be examined soon by the Cabinet for approval and then sent to Parliament for endorsement.

Preparing the draft law is in line with the Interior Ministry’s belief in the importance of resolving national challenges and fighting crime in all its forms to maintain the country’s security and stability, according to the minister.

Hammad said he instructed the Public Security Department (PSD) and administrative governors to boost monitoring of those who carry and use weapons, arresting anyone who uses them illegally.

The minister also commended Awqaf Minister Hayel Dawood’s efforts in directing imams and preachers at mosques to dedicate next Friday’s sermon to talk about the issue from a religious point of view.

He stressed the importance of the role of civil community institutions in raising awareness on the dangers of the phenomenon, which kills innocent people, according to Petra.

The Iftaa Department issued a religious edict in April urging people to abandon this practice because it disturbs peace and harms others.

According to official figures released last October, three people were killed and 41 injured by festive firing in 2014.

At least 21 cases were registered last year against anonymous assailants, where shooters could not be identified, according to the PSD.

Earlier this week, a video of a child being shot and killed during a wedding in Irbid’s Huwara town went viral, causing outrage among citizens.

The footage showed a man reloading a gun and shooting in the air during a wedding, and in another attempt to reload the gun that was pointed towards two children standing next to him, a bullet was discharged, striking one of them.

The bullet struck the six-year-old victim in the chest and he died instantly.

The suspect, who is in his thirties, was charged by the Criminal Court prosecutor and was ordered detained for 15 days at a correctional and rehabilitation centre pending further investigation.

A few days after the incident, PSD Director Maj. Gen. Atef Saudi pledged to lock up any groom whose wedding includes festive shooting.

On Tuesday night, central Amman PSD personnel dealt with a festive firing incident at a wedding in the Ashrafieh neighbourhood that resulted in the injury of a little girl, a statement said Wednesday. 

The child was hospitalised and is now in fair condition, the PSD said.

Officers apprehended the groom and his father for questioning, which led to identifying the perpetrator and seizing his weapon. 

The shooter was referred to the prosecutor general on charges of attempted murder and he was ordered detained at the Jweideh Correctional and Rehabilitation Centre, the PSD said. 

The groom and his father were referred to the governor, who ordered their detention at Jweideh, to be released on bail, for disturbing public order.

AMMAN — Female justices represented 18 per cent of the judicial body last year, according to a study released Tuesday.

The number of female judges in Jordan last year was 176 out of a total of 973 justices, according to a statement by Sisterhood is Global Institute Office (SIGI) in Amman.

In 2013, the SIGI statement said, there were 142 female judges out of 908 justices in total.

SIGI was referring to an annual report on the judicial authority in Jordan.

“Although the Judicial Institute of Jordan has provided equal opportunity for women to prove themselves, we are hopeful that this will also reflect on women who are seeking to become judges and that their number will increase rapidly,” SIGI said.

Activists have welcomed the increase in number but said it “should not come at the expense of the quality of female judges”.

“This is a good ratio that has been steadily increasing for the past 15 years,” said Jordan’s first female judge, Taghreed Hikmat.

Hikmat, who has served on various tribunals locally and internationally, said she hopes the increase will continue.

But she was quick to add that she hopes it will not be at the “expense of the quality and performance of female judges”.

“Being a judge is a sacred job that requires professionalism, integrity and accuracy, among many other specifications, and what is important is to have women judges who are qualified, neutral and are doing their job in a professional manner,” Hikmat told The Jordan Times.

She was the first woman to be appointed as judge in 1996, after almost 14 years of practising law.

Lawyer Samira Zaitoon agrees with Hikmat that performance, professionalism and integrity should come first.

“It is healthy to have female judges but it should not be based on the gender of the judge. It is about who is qualified the most to sit behind the bench,” Zaitoon told The Jordan Times.  

Nevertheless, the lawyer, who served on two councils at the Jordan Bar Association (JBA), said she was hopeful that “more women would join and eventually reach high positions”.

She said there are women who served at the Criminal Court, the Court of Appeal and other minor courts.

“Since the experience of female judges is relatively new in Jordan, it will take us some time to get to higher positions and I believe this day is coming soon,” added Zaitoon, who has been a lawyer for 25 years.

Lawyer and activist Nour Emam also pointed out that the numbers were encouraging and will eventually lead to increasing women’s numbers in the judiciary.

“Female judges are proving themselves day by day, and are receiving the appreciation they deserve from everyone,” Emam, who also served twice at the JBA council, told The Jordan Times.

“I am certain that women will assume higher positions such as becoming members of the Judicial Council and the Cassation Court. It is just a matter of time,” added the lawyer, who has over 20 years’ experience.

AMMAN — Photos of young people in the Qatraneh area attempting to perform maintenance work on parts of the desert highway were circulated on social media over the past days as motorists blame the road’s poor condition for “increasing” accidents. 

The photos posted on Facebook by some young residents of Qatraneh, 90 kilometres south of Amman, showed holes and cracks in the highway that links the capital with the southern part of the Kingdom. 

Minister of Public Works and Housing Sami Halaseh told The Jordan Times that the ministry will float a tender next week to revamp the most damaged part of the road, which he said is between Swaqa and Dabaa. 

“This tender is somewhat urgent to repair the worst parts of the road,” Halaseh said, adding that ministry will start to rehabilitate the entire 250-kilometre highway by the end of this year, 

The project will last for at least two years and cost around JD120 million, he noted, adding that there is a Cabinet decision to rehabilitate the desert highway. 

Halaseh said the project might be funded by Saudi Arabia, indicating that a delegation from the Gulf kingdom is expected to arrive in Amman next week for discussions. 

Saudis have already expressed approval to finance the project, he said. 

Commenting on the photos of young people fixing the road, Halaseh said their initiative is “highly valued” by the government. 

Facebook users said that the Qatraneh youths carried cement in their cars to fill holes in the road and photos showed them using shovels to do so.

Social media users commended the move.

Zaina M. Banihani said that Jordan would be a much better place if all people contributed to the development of the country. 

Omar Khraisat said these are the kind of people who love Jordan, because they do not seek publicity or to be seen on TVs.

Some other users criticised the government for leaving the highway in poor condition, saying although they respect the move of the youths it is the job of authorities.   

AMMAN — The Ministry of Agriculture on Wednesday dismissed as baseless news reports about Israeli potatoes “flooding” the local market, stressing that it allowed the import of the vegetable from France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Palestine, Lebanon and Egypt.

Ministry Spokesperson Nimer Haddadin said some traders have been issued import permits to buy potatoes from Israel for a certain period of time.

For his part, Merchants Union of Vegetables and Fruits Exporters Vice President Mahmoud Eqteel said around 10-15 tonnes of Israeli potatoes have been entering the local market for 10 days, adding that 120-150 tonnes of locally produced potatoes enter the local market on a daily basis, in addition to around 100 tonnes from Palestine, 50-75 from Lebanon and 50 from Egypt.

AMMAN — The lack of partisan programmes that address citizens’ concerns and issues in the Arab region led to a slowdown in reforms and the decline of trust in democracy, Senate President Abdur-Ra’uf S.

Rawabdeh said Wednesday. Receiving a delegation of participants in the 12th Youth of the Arab Capitals Forum, Rawabdeh criticised the technocratic system of ministries, stressing that a minister should be a decision maker rather than a specialised technician in his ministry.

Sami Majali, president of the Higher Youth Council organising the forum, highlighted the importance of the event in empowering young Arabs, increasing communication among them and exchanging expertise.

A total of 80 young Arab men and women representing 15 countries are taking part in the event, held under the theme “Arab youths and media”.