Czech president visits Syrian children treated under MEDEVAC programme

AMMAN — Czech President Milos Zeman on Tuesday visited Al Khalidi Hospital and checked on the work of a Czech medical team helping Syrian children in Jordan within the MEDEVAC humanitarian programme.

Amid the high influx of Syrian refugees into Jordan over the past three-and-a-half years a half, the Czech medical team is supporting Jordanian doctors in performing surgeries on children who suffer from congenital heart defects.

During the visit, Zeman — accompanied by a high-ranking delegation of Czech officials — checked on Syrian children treated under the MEDEVAC programme, which was launched in 2013 to treat Jordanian and Syrian children.

The Czech Republic implemented the MEDEVAC programme for the first time during the Iraq crisis, focusing on the treatment of paediatric heart diseases.

The programme is administered by the Czech interior ministry in cooperation with the ministries of health, foreign affairs, and defence.

Zeman is in Jordan on a several-day visit that will focus on strengthening relations between the two countries, especially in the economic field.

Later on Tuesday, in a speech delivered at the conclusion of the Jordanian-Czech Business Forum, Zeman expressed his country’s solidarity with the Kingdom over the murder of pilot Muath Kasasbeh by the so-called Islamic State, offering his condolences to the Jordanian people.

The president also said that his country will grant His Majesty King Abdullah its prestigious White Lion Medal, as a sign of appreciation for his courage and wisdom.

Also on Tuesday, Interior Minister Hussein Majali met with Czech Police Chief Tomas Tuhy and discussed means to boost police and security cooperation, especially in combating terrorism, radicalism and organised crime.

Majali pointed out that Jordan is using all its capabilities to combat terrorism and protect people from its devastating effects, highlighting the importance of raising awareness and tackling misleading ideologies through different platforms including places of worship, schools and universities.

The minister stressed the need to strengthen information and expertise exchange on combating organised crime and drug trafficking, welcoming steps taken by the Czech government towards boosting this cooperation.

Majali also asserted Jordan’s position in support of a political solution in Syria that guarantees the unity of the Syrian people and their country’s territorial integrity.

He highlighted the pressures placed on the Kingdom as a result of hosting around 1.4 million Syrians.

The Czech official lauded Jordan’s key role in dealing with regional issues, especially in combating terrorism, stressing his country’s desire to boost its coordination with the Kingdom in security and police fields.