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JERASH — Building a cultural centre in Jerash is among the Culture Ministry’s priorities for next year, Culture Minister Lana Mamkegh said on Tuesday.

The minister made the remark at a meeting with representatives of cultural entities and local residents during a visit to the governorate, some 48km north of Amman, to look for an appropriate plot of land to accommodate the centre.

Mamkegh underscored the important history of the city and its heritage, noting that it is in a position to compete with Aqaba and Mafraq to become Jordan’s cultural city in 2015.

Jerash Mayor Ali Qoqazeh expressed the municipality’s readiness to present a suitable location for the centre.

Discussions also addressed the 2014 Jerash Festival which will be inaugurated at the ancient Roman city’s Northern Theatre for the first time since it was launched.

AMMAN — Justice Ministry Secretary General Ahmad Jamalieh on Tuesday met with Baroness Patricia Scotland, shadow attorney general of the UK, and discussed means to benefit from British experience in developing its criminal justice system.

Jamalieh noted that developing Jordan’s criminal justice system is one of the ministry’s strategic projects, implemented with EU support, stressing the Kingdom’s commitment to improving guarantees of fair trials and enhancing respect of human rights.

AMMAN — Education Minister Mohammad Thneibat on Tuesday briefed Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour on measures his ministry is taking to bring an end to assaults on teachers and school administrators.

The minister said he also met with Judicial Council President Hisham Tal and the attorney general on Tuesday and discussed the legal aspects of the issue.

Thneibat added that the ministry has filed lawsuits against assailants, underlining that the dignity of teachers lies at the heart of the country’s prestige.

AMMAN — The higher committee for the international conference on Jerusalem on Tuesday endorsed the agenda of the event which will open in Amman on April 28.

During the three-day conference, dubbed “The Road to Jerusalem”, MPs, politicians, scientists, and Muslim and Christian clergymen from the Arab world will be discussing Israeli assaults on holy sites in the old city, according to the committee’s rapporteur, Deputy Yihya Saud.

Lower House Speaker Atef Tarawneh, who presided over the committee’s meeting, said the annual conference was initiated by Jordan during the recent meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation in Tehran.

AMMAN — Border guards received 839 Syrian refugees during the past 48 hours, a source said Tuesday.

Border guards received the refugees and transferred them to shelters set up by the Jordan Armed Forces for this purpose.

AMMAN — A new case of coronavirus (Middle East Respiratory Syndrome) was reported in Jordan on Tuesday.

The Health Ministry said a 25-year-old Saudi Arabian was admitted to a private hospital in the Kingdom, where he was diagnosed with the virus.

The patient is in stable condition and does not need a respirator, the ministry added.

Jordan has reported two cases of this strain of the coronavirus in 2012 and two this year, while total coronavirus-related deaths reached three.

AMMAN — Jordan and Chile on Tuesday called for exchanging visits and information in the areas of security and police cooperation as well as crime fighting.

During a meeting with Chile’s Ambassador to Jordan Eduardo Escobar Marin, Interior Minister Hussein Majali explained how regional conditions and the Syrian crisis have affected the economic and political situation in the Kingdom.

The ambassador acknowledged Jordan’s important role in dealing with regional challenges, especially in security related issues as well as combating crime and terrorism.

NORTHERN BADIA — Minister of Public Works and Housing Sami Halaseh on Tuesday said a joint committee from the ministries of public works and health will be formed to follow up on the Northern Badia Hospital project, which should be ready by August 1.

During a visit to the hospital with Health Minister Ali Hiasat, Halaseh said the contractor carrying out the project has until August to finish all construction work.

Delays in the completion of the JD15 million hospital sparked several complaints from area residents.

AMMAN — The absence of transparency, information and facts for the public about the privatisation experience since its beginning has created an air of uncertainty and scepticism around the whole process, head of the Privatisation Evaluation Committee Omar Razzaz said on Tuesday.

During a brainstorming session with secretaries general of political parties attended by Minister of Political and Parliamentary Affairs Khaled Kalaldeh, Razzaz added that this was still the case until Royal directives were issued to form a committee of local and international experts to review the process, and study its economic and social effects, based on facts and figures, rather than impressions and rumours.

AMMAN — Chairman of the Joint Chiefs-of-Staff Gen. Mashal Al Zaben on Tuesday met with delegation from the Pakistani National Defence University.

Discussions at the meeting, attended by HRH Prince Feisal, covered bilateral ties and prospects for further cooperation.