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AMMAN — The Greater Amman Municipality (GAM) started on Wednesday receiving applications to renew licences for serving argileh at cafés.

GAM said the applications are only for renewals and not for new licences, noting that it is not authorised to monitor health standards related to allowing argileh smoking.

AMMAN — Jordan and Bahrain on Wednesday discussed bilateral ties and parliamentary cooperation and means to enhance them further.

During a meeting with Bahraini Minister of State for Information Affairs Samira Ibrahim Bin Rajab, Senate President Abdur-Ra’uf S.

Rawabdeh highlighted the strong ties between Jordan and Bahrain.

The Senate’s Jordanian-Bahraini Committee also met with Bin Rajab and discussed means to forge closer ties between the two countries in various domains.

Also on Wednesday, acting Lower House Speaker Ahmad Safadi met with the Bahraini minister, who said the decades-old bilateral ties extend to all spheres, stressing her country’s keenness on developing them.

AMMAN — The Public Security Department on Wednesday announced brief road closures and detours for Friday on the road leading to Queen Alia International Airport (QAIA) due to the Dead Sea Marathon, which will commence at 6am.

The road leading to QAIA from the traffic light near Al Ahli Club will be divided into two lanes, one for contestants and the other for traffic.

The same measure will be applied on the road from Marj Al Hamam to the Dead Sea.

Traffic from the south heading towards the Dead Sea will be diverted to the Madaba road.

Also, traffic from the Baptism Site will be diverted towards an army check point in order to leave one lane for the runners to reach Amman Tourist Beach.

AMMAN — Gendarmerie Department Director General Maj.

Gen. Ahmad Sweilmin on Wednesday met with Romanian Ambassador to Jordan Bogdan Filip and discussed ways to develop cooperation between the two countries’ gendarmerie departments.

Also on Wednesday, Sweilmin met with Brunei’s chargé d’affaires Mohammad Bin Daoud and reviewed prospects for further cooperation, especially in the area of training.

AMMAN — Amman Mayor Aqel Biltaji on Wednesday met with Lebanese Ambassador to Jordan Michelin Baz and discussed means to boost cooperation between Amman and Beirut in areas related to municipal services.

Biltaji highlighted the Greater Amman Municipality’s plans to develop the capital, stressing the importance of improving cultural exchange between the two countries in terms of cultural activities and festivals.

AMMAN — The Health Ministry on Wednesday said a survey it conducted in the Southern Shuneh region surrounding the Dead Sea has maintained that there are no malaria-carrying mosquitoes in the area.

Mohammad Abdullat, director of the Health Ministry’s communicable diseases directorate, said the ministry tested 1,500 blood samples from guest workers residing in the area, and no contamination was reported.

He highlighted that no malaria symptoms were recorded in the survey, including among those who were in contact with a doctor who passed away after contracting the disease while treating a guest worker at a private hospital.

Abdullat said malaria is not endemic in Jordan and all the diagnosed cases are from visitors to the country, adding that around 82 cases of the disease are annually reported in the Kingdom.

AMMAN — UN officials and representatives of Arab League states, financing institutions and civil society convened on Wednesday with the purpose of adopting a unified Arab position on sustainable development.

The Arab High Level Forum on Sustainable Development, organised by the UN Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA), also seeks to prepare for an effective Arab participation in the second session of the High-Level Political Forum on sustainable Development, which will be held during the next session of the UN Economic and Social Council in New York in July.

Addressing attendees HRH Prince Hassan, chairman of the UN Secretary General’s Advisory Board on Water and Sanitation, stressed the importance of the meeting to convey a strong and unified message to the international community on the vital importance of water.

The forum represents a platform for Arabs to list their priorities and to formulate their views on creating an international dialogue through ESCWA on these priorities.

AMMAN — Foreign office consultations held this week between India and Jordan provided the two countries with an opportunity to review bilateral relations and examine ways to boost them, Secretary (East) in India’s Ministry of External Affairs Anil Wadhwa said on Tuesday.   

In an interview with The Jordan Times, Wadhwa said the two sides agreed to hold consultations at regular intervals because of their significance in strengthening ties. 

Previous foreign office consultations were held in 2005.

More importantly, the discussions took place in a very “cordial atmosphere”, reflecting the traditionally friendly relations between India and Jordan, according to the diplomat.

Expressing satisfaction with the outcome of the meetings, Wadhwa said they also gave both countries the chance to exchange views on regional and international issues of mutual interest. 

He said his meeting with Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh “focused mainly on trade and investments”.

“He [Judeh] suggested that we should make sure that we have a visit of a technical delegation, preferably every month, in order to keep the high level of momentum,” Wadhwa added.

“He also suggested that we should set a trade target every year so that we can try to achieve that.”

Also at the meeting, Judeh accepted an invitation to visit India, according to Wadhwa. 

“We have a new government which is going to be in force by June, so sometime between June and December, he will be visiting us,” the Indian official noted. 

Regarding ways to materialise the envisaged goals he said: “We will have to get the delegations to come and discuss tangible aspects of cooperation.” 

“We have had a general discussion of what we have at the moment. We have 25 textile companies that have invested in the special qualifying zones in Jordan.”

“Also, we have a big joint venture which will be commissioned in the month of May… That plant will produce 500,000 metric tonnes of phosphoric acid to be exported to India annually,” Wadhwa said, adding that there are plans to set up two other phosphoric acid plants, “which will probably happen next year”.

During a meeting with Trade Minister Hatem Halawani on Monday, discussions focused on ways to increase the trade volume, which amounted to $1.61 billion in 2013. 

Meanwhile, a visit by two Jordanian delegations representing small- and medium-sized enterprises and pharmaceuticals to India is pending, he said, noting that the two sides are considering the potential for boosting bilateral trade, through cooperation in IT, call centres, pharmaceuticals, automobiles, automotive spare parts, fertilisers and textiles.

Moreover, the India-Jordan Economic and Trade Committee will convene in Amman after June, he said. 

Wadhwa commended Jordan’s development in various areas.

“There is a lot of progress since my last visit to the Kingdom 1998.”  

“I am very happy with my visit to Jordan and would like to take this opportunity to convey my warm and very best wishes to the friendly and welcoming people of this beautiful Kingdom.” 

During the three-day visit, which concluded late Tuesday, the delegates went to Jerash and the Dead Sea. 

Political transformations

Talks with Foreign Ministry officials addressed the Middle East peace process, Wadhwa said, noting that India and Jordan share similar views on these issues. 

“We strongly reject religious fundamentalism and extremism as well as terrorism in all forms,” he added, noting that his country also seeks to further strengthen its cooperation with Jordan in the security field.

India supports a just, comprehensive and lasting peace, leading to the establishment of a secure, viable and united state of Palestine with East Jerusalem as its capital and with recognised borders alongside Israel, and would like to see an amicable solution of the issue, Wadhwa said, commending Jordan’s role in seeking a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and in strengthening the forces of moderation.

“India is also deeply concerned at the ongoing violence in Syria and the loss of human life. It has consistently urged all sides to abdicate violence so that conditions can be created for an inclusive political solution… taking into account the legitimate aspirations of the people of Syria,” the diplomat said.

“Syria’s role in the Middle East and in the stability of the wider region is pivotal. Thus prolonged instability or unrest in Syria will have serious ramifications for the region and beyond.”

AMMAN — Jordan and Sudan on Wednesday signed 19 agreements, executive programmes and memoranda of understanding seeking to enhance joint cooperation in a variety of areas.

The agreements were signed following the sixth meeting of the higher Jordanian-Sudanese committee that was co-chaired by Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour and Sudan’s First Vice President Bakri Hassan Saleh.

The agreements cover diverse sectors, including agriculture, health, construction, rainwater harvesting, environment, renewable energy, tourism and vocational training.

They also cover administrative cooperation in customs management, municipal affairs, social development, education, youth, and archiving and documentation.

Wednesday marked the sixth meeting of the joint committee, after a six-year suspension due to regional developments.

Ensour said the government is keen on enhancing political, economic and social cooperation with Sudan, stressing the need to fully implement the free trade agreement between the two countries.

The premier also called for removing all obstacles hindering trade exchange between the two countries through simplifying export and transportation measures.

Saleh thanked Jordan for hosting the committee meeting and called for implementing joint strategic projects that benefit both countries, especially in agriculture.

Also on Wednesday, Senate President Abdur-Ra’uf S. Rawabdeh met with Saleh and the accompanying delegation.

Rawabdeh and Saleh agreed on the importance of enhancing parliamentary relations between Amman and Khartoum.

AMMAN — The Lower House on Wednesday started deliberations over the draft amendments to the Jordan Press Association (JPA) Law, with MPs disagreeing over the definition of a journalist.

Deputies also argued over the scope of a journalist’s job and the limitations imposed on that profession.

The bill defines a journalist as a member of the JPA who practises journalism regularly and is registered on the list of working journalists.

Minister of State for Media Affairs and Communications Mohammad Momani informed MPs that the amendments were all made by the JPA and that the government did not change anything. 

The government only participated in the legal drafting of the bill, Momani added.

After the Lower House endorsed the provision defining journalists, some MPs tried to reopen it for discussion, but their request was rejected. They can put forward their request once the House concludes its discussions of the draft law.

Also at Wednesday’s session, the Lower House endorsed the 2014 draft amendments to the Formation of Military Tribunals Law. 

The bill is meant to review the criteria of forming military tribunals to ensure that all judges in these courts are from a military background and to fulfil Jordan’s obligations in international accords.

In remarks at the session, MP Mahmoud Mheidat (Irbid, 9th District) called on the government to meet its obligations to mitigate the suffering of Jordanians living in the northern governorates that host hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees.

He said donors have turned their backs on the Kingdom, adding that Jordan must take strict measures to eliminate any potential risks that may emerge due to the rise in the number of Syrian refugees in the north.

Raising another issue, MP Ibrahim Eteiwi (Tafileh, 1st District) warned that Royal Jordanian faces the risk of bankruptcy if no support is provided to it immediately. The company incurred over JD30 million in losses last year.