British embassy hosts birthday party for Queen Elizabeth

AMMAN — The British embassy in Amman celebrated the 93rd birthday of Queen Elizabeth II on Wednesday night, according to an embassy statement.

The queen’s birthday is on April 21, however, it is officially celebrated on the second Saturday in June every year, the statement said, adding that the event also marked the 70th anniversary of the British Council in Jordan. 

British Ambassador to Jordan Edward Oakden and the embassy team hosted over 700 guests at the celebration, including members of government, civil society institutions, businesses and the diplomatic community.

During the event, Ambassador Oakden highlighted the past year of Jordanian-British relations, including the London initiative in late February. 

“Together, we painted a vision of a future Jordanian economy enabled by educational reform to beat the international competition, and to create lasting jobs and sustainable growth,” he said. 

“Britain will remain steadfast in Jordan’s support, whether on the security front, the economic front or the political, where the UK has made very clear our support for a two-state solution, for the right of return, for UNRWA and for Jerusalem’s status to be left for the final negotiations in a way that allows it to be the future capital of both Israel and Palestine. There can be no place for annexation,” the ambassador added.

The celebration also featured music from the Jordan Armed Forces-Arab Army band, the Corps of Army Music’s jazz trio and bugler and the Royal Mercians’ drummers, the statement said.