Local

AMMAN — A group of MPs on Sunday requested that an “urgent” draft law be formulated, banning the import of Israeli gas to the Kingdom. 

In the request submitted to the Lower House speaker’s office, a total of 58 deputies demanded that a law be written scrapping the gas deal with Israel. 

House Speaker Atef Tarawneh tasked the Legal Committee to address the proposal as an urgent matter and submit its recommendations promptly. 

A minimum of 10 senators or deputies shall have the right to propose or amend any law under Article 95 of the Constitution which reads: "If the House is of the opinion that the proposal be accepted it shall refer it to the Government for drafting it in the form of draft law, and to submit it to the House either during the same session or at the following session." 

Meanwhile, dozens of political party leaders and activists staged a protest in front of Parliament, calling on MPs to push for the cancellation of the gas deal with Israel.   

In September 2016, Jordan’s National Electric Power Company (NEPCO) signed a 15-year agreement with Noble Energy, a Houston-based company that holds the largest share in the Israeli Leviathan Gas Field, to purchase $10 billion worth of natural gas.

The government said it would import 250-300 million cubic feet of natural gas per day from Noble Energy, which is expected to save the Kingdom around JD700 million.

On Sunday, NEPCO said that experimental pumping of gas is scheduled to commence in early 2020 for three months, with the aim of testing the readiness of the infrastructure before the start of actual pumping, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

Under the deal, Jordan will receive 3 billion cubic metres of gas per year.

In September, the Constitutional Court ruled that the gas deal between NEPCO and Noble Energy does not need Parliament’s approval. In a ruling published recently in the Official Gazette, the court explained that the government is not required to refer the gas deal to Parliament for approval as it was signed between two companies and not two states.

The court’s decision came in response to a request by the government in March to rule on the interpretation of Article 33 of the Constitution. 

Paragraph B of the said article reads: “Treaties and agreements which involve financial commitments to the Treasury or affect the public or private rights of Jordanians shall not be valid unless approved by the National Assembly. In no circumstances shall any secret terms contained in any treaty or agreement be contrary to their overt terms.”

The court said that even if a company is fully owned by the government, it is not to be considered an official public institution and thus decisions made by its board are not under the jurisdiction of public administration.

In a special session in March on the matter, the House declared its “utter rejection” of the gas deal”, requesting that the agreement be “cancelled at any cost”.

Tarawneh said that “the deal is completely rejected and we demand it gets cancelled at any cost and no matter what the Constitutional Court says”.

At the time, MPs called on the government to look for alternative energy resources from Arab states, arguing that the gas deal threatens Jordan’s energy security and serves the Israeli occupation’s economy.

Other deputies called for legal action against the government that signed the gas deal with Israel.

MP demands took further escalatory form with a total of 16 deputies signing a memorandum, requesting a vote of no confidence in Prime Minister Omar Razzaz’s government for signing the gas deal with the “Zionist entity”.

AMMAN — Moscow is working closely with Jordan on resolving the issue of the Rukban camp near the Syrian-Jordanian border, Russian Ambassador to Jordan Gleb Desyatnikov said on Sunday.

Desyatnikov added that Russia supports all efforts seeking to restore security and stability to Syria, especially in the southern regions on the borders with Jordan, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. 

Located in the no-man’s land at the border of Jordan, Syria and Iraq near Al Tanf US base, Rukban camp was estimated to accommodate some 36,000 displaced Syrians before the reported departures. The US has described the camp as “one of Syria’s most challenging places to reach”. 

During a meeting with Senate President Faisal Fayez,  Desyatnikov also said that Russia supports Jordan's custodianship over Jerusalem's Islamic and Christian holy sites, adding that Moscow opposes relocation of foreign embassies to the holy city and is against all Israeli unilateral measures in Jerusalem and the Jordan Valley, according to Petra. 

The ambassador described the Moscow-Amman relations as “deep-rooted”, unveiling a visit soon by Russian businesspeople to Jordan to explore cooperation and participate in the Jordan Agricultural Fair, according to Petra. 

For his part, Fayez commended the advanced Jordanian-Russian relations, saying that the two countries see eye-to-eye on a number of regional and international issues, including Syria and Palestine, according to Petra.  

AMMAN — Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi on Sunday met with Japanese Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Keisuke Suzuki over means to enhance cooperation in the economic and defence fields, as well as efforts exerted in the war against terrorism.

Discussions during the meeting covered endeavours to overcome regional challenges in a way that realises security and stability as part of continuous strategic dialogue between the two countries, according to a Foreign Ministry statement.  

Talks also focused on the latest regional and international developments and efforts to reach solutions to crises in the Middle East. 

Safadi noted that launching a strategic dialogue with Japan at the political and military levels during His Majesty King Abdullah's visit to Tokyo in 2018 resulted in creating further opportunities to enhance "solid ties" between the two countries in the political, economic, cultural, security and defence fields. 

The foreign minister acquainted Suzuki with the government's four-part programme aimed at improving the Kingdom's economic performance and increasing growth rates. He praised the continued Japanese support for the national economic development process and for plans to deal with the repercussions of regional crises, mainly the Syrian refugee crisis. 

Safadi highlighted the importance of the Japanese role in the region and its position on certain issues, commending Tokyo's support of the two-state solution to solve the Palestinian conflict.

In this regard, he stressed that meeting the Palestinians' rights to freedom and establishing their independent state on the pre-1967 lines with East Jerusalem as its capital, according to the two-state solution and international legitimacy resolutions, is the only means to realise the comprehensive peace. 

The minister also expressed the Kingdom's appreciation for Japan's support to UNRWA, highlighting the importance of the agreement signed on Saturday between Japan and UNRWA, under which Japan will provide the agency with $11 million in aid to contribute to easing UNRWA's financial deficit. 

For his part, Suzuki voiced his country's keenness to develop strategic partnership with Jordan and continue consultation and coordination over regional developments and efforts to overcome crises. 

He also commended Jordan's "important role" in realising peace and stability in the region and the Kingdom's humanitarian role in hosting Syrian refugees, reiterating Japan's commitment to support Amman and alleviate burdens on the Kingdom resulting from regional crises. 

AMMAN — Monday marks the 44th birthday of HRH Prince Ali, who was born on December 23, 1975, to Their Majesties the late King Hussein and the late Queen Alia.

Prince Ali began his primary education at the Islamic Educational College in Amman, and continued his studies in the UK and the US, before graduating from Salisbury School in Connecticut in 1993, where he excelled in sports, particularly wrestling.

He then joined the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, where he was awarded the Brunei Medal for Excellence and was commissioned as an officer in 1994.

Before continuing his studies in the US, Prince Ali served in the Special Forces as a pathfinder, earning his military freefall parachute wings.

In 1999, Prince Ali was asked to serve as commander of His Majesty King Abdullah’s Special Security in the Royal Guards, serving in that capacity until January 28, 2008, when the King entrusted him with establishing and directing the National Centre for Security and Crisis Management.

Prince Ali, who currently serves in the Jordan Armed Forces-Arab Army as a major general, is president of the Jordan Football Association and the West Asian Football Federation, as well as chairman of the Royal Film Commission (RFC).

On January 6, 2011, the prince was elected FIFA vice president for Asia.

He also chaired the social responsibility committees at FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation.

In 2012, Prince Ali founded the Asian Football Development Project, a non-profit youth commission based in Amman, whose objective is to provide effective, need-based assistance to all Asian, national and regional football associations and affiliates.

The prince has also chaired the RFC since its establishment in 2003. The commission works to support the local film industry to enable Jordanian filmmakers to compete internationally.

In 2018, HRH Prince Ali inaugurated the Association Football Development Programme (AFDP) Global, an international social enterprise aimed at uniting and developing communities around the world through football. This new initiative builds on the successful model that Prince Ali started in Asia, and continues to expand to achieve sustainable results globally.

On September 7, 2004, Prince Ali married HRH Princess Rym, daughter of veteran UN and Algerian diplomat Lakhdar Brahimi. They have a daughter, Princess Jalila, born on September 16, 2005 and a son, Prince Abdullah, born on March 19, 2007.

AMMAN — The Association of Owners of Clearance and Transport Companies and the Jordan Truck Owners Association (JTOA) on Sunday agreed with the Syrian International Freight Forwarding Association (SIFFA) to prepare a joint document to refer challenges and obstacles to the concerned authorities in Jordan and Syria.

During a meeting held at the headquarters of the Syrian International Freight Forwarding Association in Damascus on Sunday, Head of the Association of Owners of Clearance and Transport Companies Daifullah Abu Aqoula said that the visit of the Jordanian delegation to Syria comes at the invitation of SIFFA to discuss, identify and seek a solution to challenges preventing the increase in trade and transport between the two countries. 

Abu Aqoula noted that the association hopes to restore the trade and transport traffic to its pre-conflict state, stressing the importance of reimplementing an agreement to bolster trade cooperation between the two countries in 2009, and removing any additional fees imposed on transport and freight forwarding. 

For his part, Head of the JTOA Mohammad Khair Dawood said that the Jordanian delegation's participation in the meeting aims to discuss and facilitate the movement of trucks between the two countries without complications. He noted that failure in doing so results in a common loss for both countries' economies. 

Dawood noted that if road freight companies were reluctant to facilitate the movement of trucks and goods between the Syria and Jordan, international shipping companies would step in to meet merchants' needs for swift transportation of goods. 

Additionally, Head of SIFFA Mohammad Kishor, said that Jordanian-Syrian relations are “historic”, affirming SIFFA's readiness to serve Jordanian businesspeople. 

He also called on the Jordanian government to facilitate and ease the entry of Syrian businesspeople into the Kingdom without prior approvals. 

Kishor pointed out that the Syrian government is ready for any cooperation that will achieve the common interest of the two countries' economies. 

He said that no economy can be established in a country without transporting or facilitating transit cargo shipment, stressing the need for cooperation in this field and the removal of various fees and obstacles.

AMMAN — Jumana Yousef, 21, recently stumbled upon her passion for art and cultural heritage almost by accident. 

“Sometimes, we can’t see something that might be right in front of us. It takes a spark to ignite it. For me, the spark happened when I started working under the guidance of UNESCO and Leaders of Tomorrow, pioneering my initiative to build an appreciation amongst youth for local heritage and culture.”

Jumana’s initiative came to life when she applied for an opportunity she saw advertised on social media, seeking expressions of interest from youth interested in "solving societal problems". 

As a part of the joint UNESCO-UNOCT “Youth Peacebuilding” project, co-funded by Canada, UNESCO's Amman office has been working in collaboration with "Leaders of Tomorrow", a youth-led NGO, training youth in an effort to enhance their cultural civic engagement, participation and sense of belonging.

The training was designed to empower youth and advance young’s people skills in leadership, critical thinking and initiative management, developing creative and sustainable cultural initiatives that prevent violent extremism by promoting a sense of identity and citizenship. 

Jumana grew up in East Amman and is in her fourth and final year of study at the University of Jordan. “I got a call telling me that I was one of 20 youth who had been accepted. I was overjoyed. What followed was a very rich experience. 

During the daily sessions, we learned how to express ourselves clearly and concisely, how to discuss issues without interrupting, and how to think differently than I ever had before.”

Near the end of the five days of training, the youth were divided into teams, each tasked with developing their own youth engagement initiative. 

Jumana and her team worked to cultivate an enterprise for youth called "You Belong Here". The inspiring scheme attracted local youth and challenged them to learn about their own cultural heritage.

“I think of ‘belonging’ as a simple word that means so much more. To help youth feel that they belong in their communities and their country, we need to create a strong link between them and their world. During October and November, the ‘You Belong Here’ participants and I visited the Citadel, the old downtown, Jabal Lweibdeh and historic Naour," she said. 

"We spent two days in each place," she noted. "During our visits we would ask questions to the locals, interview elders, make sketches of interesting elements and learn everything possible about these places. The people were from all walks of life — Muslims, Christians, Circassians — and they welcomed our curiosity. We left with such a deep understanding of the sites and our history." 

She is eager to begin round two of the "You Belong Here" site visits and this time hopes to create mini-documentaries of the sites using film. 

(UNESCO contributed this article to The Jordan Times)

AMMAN — The government this week will launch the fourth and final executive package to strengthen the national economy, which will focus on bettering citizens' living conditions and improving services. 

To meet its intended goals, the fourth bundle will include a series of measures and decisions related to the services sector, notably healthcare, education and transportation, which reflect positively on the services provided to citizens, according to an official source.

Improving the services provided by vital sectors is a priority that falls within the government's plans and programmes, the source added.

In October, the government announced its comprehensive programme to boost the economy through four packages. 

These include stimulating the economy and investments, management and financial reform, improving citizens’ livelihoods and comprehensively improving services.

The first two packages tackled investments and the economy and addressed managerial sloppiness. 

The first package provided incentives in the real-estate sector, focused on boosting exports and production, and introduced measures to improve labour laws and employment opportunities for Jordanians. 

The second package lowered taxes on electric cars, removed the vehicle weight tax, reduced and controlled government purchases and resolved bureaucracy issues. 

Benefitting some 700,000 Jordanians, the third package focused on increasing the salaries of employees and retirees in both the public sector and the military. 

AMMAN — The Patriarch of the Holy City of Jerusalem, All Palestine and Jordan Theophilos III on Sunday received His Majesty King Abdullah's representative Minister of State for Prime Ministry Affairs Sami Daoud, who will participate in the Christmas celebrations. 

Patriarch Theophilos III expressed his appreciation for the Kingdom's important role in enhancing the Jerusalemite identity and protecting holy sites, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The patriarch said that His Majesty's representation by senior officials during Christmas each year shows His Majesty’s keenness on enhancing cohesion among communities. Daoud conveyed the King's greeting to the Patriarch and the Christians in the holy land. 

AMMAN — HH Prince Mired, president of the Higher Council for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (HCD), on Sunday expressed the council's readiness to provide technical and logistic support to employees of the Queen Alia International Airport in revamping its facilities to serve people with disabilities.

Meeting with Kjeld Binger, CEO of Airport International Group, and Nicolas Duthilleul, chief operations executive, Prince Mired highlighted the importance of enhancing the accessibility of passengers with disabilities, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

Binger expressed his team's readiness to implement all steps necessary to make the airport fully accessible to people with disabilities, proposing to form a joint committee between the group and the HCD to develop an action plan to meet the needs of people with disabilities.  

AMMAN — In accordance with directives by His Majesty King Abdullah, the Supreme Commander of the Jordan Armed Forces-Arab Army (JAF), Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Maj. Gen. Yousef Huneiti on Sunday directed the JAF General Command to implement several decisions to realise Royal directives.

In a meeting with high ranking officers, Huneiti called for increasing the number of beneficiaries from the military housing fund by 50 commissioned and non-commissioned officers and five officers from the officers housing fund, increasing the number of monthly beneficiaries from the two funds to 450 and 40 JAF personnel respectively.

The chairman also decided to distribute 148 apartments to beneficiaries of the military housing fund with prices that suit their income through soft loans with zero interest rates, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. He also called for allocating plots of land to distribute to beneficiary officers.