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AMMAN — Prime Minister Omar Razzaz on Sunday received NATO's Supreme Allied Commander Transformation General André Lanata and an accompanying delegation.

The two sides discussed the partnership between Jordan and NATO and the latest regional developments, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. 

AMMAN — Following “extensive efforts” by the Foreign Ministry, Jordanians Thamer Quteishat and Hamdi Milhem on Sunday were released in Sanaa after Houthi rebels detained them on November 7.

Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Deifallah Fayez said that Quteishat and Milhem were in Yemen to carry out a financial audit of humanitarian programmes in the country, according to a ministry statement.

The spokesperson praised the efforts and cooperation of UN personnel, primarily the office of the UN’s special envoy to Yemen. 

AMMAN — The absence of truth and accurate information from the media will lead to the spread of rumours and the dissemination of misleading information, Minister of State for Media Affairs Amjad Adaileh said on Sunday.

During a meeting with media spokespersons at ministries and government institutions, Adaileh stressed the importance of swift announcements and responses to questions and inquiries by media outlets and the public. He noted that “the slow flow of information leads to ambiguity”, which fosters the spread of rumours and “confusion” among the public, according to the Jordan News Agency, Petra.  

AMMAN — The Samra Electric Power Generation Company and the Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy Company on Sunday signed an agreement to operate and implement maintenance for the 80-megawatt Maan Wind Station to preserve the facility's operational efficiency.

According to a statement carried by the Jordan News Agency, Petra, the agreement was signed by Sufian Bataineh, director general of the Samra Company, and Paula García, head of Siemens Gamesa’s service sales in Southern Europe and Africa.

Bataineh said that the 10-year deal entails the transfer of expertise from Siemens Gamesa to Samra employees, highlighting the importance of the agreement in guaranteeing the security of the power supply. 

AMMAN — Food sector exports increased by 5.4 per cent in the first eight months of 2019, compared with the same period of 2018. Muhammad Jitan, representative of the sector at the Jordan Chamber of Industry, said that the value of exports during the January-August period of 2019 totalled JD237 million, compared with JD224 million in the first eight months of 2018, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

Jitan noted that the sector's production amounts to 23 per cent of the Kingdom’s total industrial production, with an annual value of JD4 billion, adding that the food sector comprises some 15 per cent, or 2,645 of the total number of industrial facilities in Jordan.

The sector provides some 50,000 jobs with a total registered capital of JD641 million and assets of JD2 billion, he pointed out. 

AMMAN — The weather is forecast to remain moderate on Monday and warm on Tuesday, with a chance of light rainfall in the north and east of the Kingdom on Wednesday, according to the Jordan Meteorological Department (JMD).

The JMD warned of low visibility on Monday and Tuesday in badia areas due to winds, and possible danger from slippery roads in areas that might witness rain on Wednesday.

In Amman, temperatures are forecast to range between 20°C and 8°C on Monday, increasing to a high of 24°C and a low of 11°C on Tuesday and then dropping again to range between 21°C and 11°C on Wednesday.

In Zarqa, Monday temperatures are forecast to see a high of 21°C and a low of 4°C, while on Tuesday temperatures will reach a high of 25°C and a low of 7°C. On Wednesday, temperatures are forecast to range between 22°C and 7°C.

The JMD forecasts Monday temperatures reaching a high of 26°C during the day and a low of 13°C at night in Aqaba, where mercury levels are expected to range between 30°C and 17°C on Tuesday and 28°C and 18°C on Wednesday.

AMMAN — Goethe-Institut Amman, together with artists Muath Isaeid and Nairuz Ajlouni, organised a public discussion on Saturday on the future of sound in the city, when the electric car will have replaced the internal combustion engine.

“With what sound is the endless noise of our streets replaced? How can we shape this paradigm shift to give our lives more pleasing sounds?” These were questions raised at the event at the Jordan National Gallery of Fine Arts.

“The idea of the whole project is to open up the fact that artists and the public can interfere and change city sounds through electric-powered transportation means,” said Isaeid, a culture and programmes manager at Al Balad Theatre in Amman who is mainly known for curating and organising murals around the city and the street art festival "Baladk".

“It is important to think about sound as we progress with technology,” Isaeid told The Jordan Times.

Participants in the event took part in a “conscious sound walking tour” around the venue, paying attention to “notice surrounding sounds and reflect on city sounds”, according to the artist.

In September, Isaeid created a performance with German producer Tanja Krone and Zeitraumexit art centre in Mannheim in Germany titled "E-sound of silence", which was funded by Goethe-Institut and gave way to Saturday’s event, according to the artist.

Krone and Isaeid have also organised a two-part workshop for German and Jordanian sound artists, with the participation of Jordanians Nairuz Ajlouni and Amjad Shahrour. One part was carried out in Mannheim in September and the second part will happen in Amman in the summer of next year. 

“The extensive feedback of the public discussion will help us in steering and formulating the upcoming workshop,” Isaeid noted.

“The sounds that we hear in our daily lives here in Amman are imprinted in our being,” the artist said, adding: “The audience confirmed that Amman has a unique urban sound, for example the gas car sounds, the mobile vegetable sellers and the scrap collecting cars shouting, the sound of the Adhan and the high volume of beeping cars.”

AMMAN — A recent opinion poll has revealed that 86 per cent of Jordanians believe that domestic violence is prevalent in the country, while 64 per cent consider this problem to be directly related to poverty, with women and children the most likely victims of violent acts.

The poll, conducted by the Department of Public Opinion Polls and Surveys from November 18 to 21 and issued by the Centre for Strategic Studies at the University of Jordan, surveyed a representative sample of Jordanian society from all governorates, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported on Sunday.

Included in the “Jordan Street Pulse” poll series, it addressed pressing issues currently facing Jordan, the region and the international community, with a focus on domestic and social violence.

The results indicated that 47 per cent of the respondents believe partner violence is “very common” in Jordan, while 35 per cent said it occurs at a moderate rate and 13 per cent at a low rate.

When asked about the most common forms of domestic violence, 47 per cent indicated that physical violence is the most common, followed by verbal abuse at 19 per cent and marital violence at 10 per cent.

According to the survey, poverty is the main reason behind domestic violence, at 39 per cent, while 19 per cent of respondents said that violence mainly stems from the “general economic situation”, followed by 9 per cent attributing it to marital conflicts, 8 per cent citing ignorance and unawareness and 6 per cent unemployment.

Thirty-six per cent of respondents noted that children are the most vulnerable, followed by 29 per cent indicating women in general, 11 per cent wives and 8 per cent the poor.

Regarding the government's role in addressing this phenomenon, 21 per cent of the respondents said that the problem can be controlled by intensifying family guidance and awareness campaigns.

The results showed that 18 per cent called for strict laws, 16 per cent said that the government should create jobs for unemployed people and 15 per cent said that government efforts should focus on improving citizens' living conditions.    

Poverty is the most pressing local issue according to 22.8 per cent of respondents. Following poverty, unemployment came in second at 21.8 per cent and difficult economic conditions came in third among local issues at 16.8 per cent. Price hikes and high living costs registered 9.8 per cent, followed by corruption and favouritism at 6.9 per cent, Petra reported.

Regionally, Jerusalem and the Palestinian cause are considered to be the most urgent issues at 47 per cent, followed by crises and wars at 18.4 per cent, security and stability at 16.4 per cent and finally, the issue of hosting refugees in the Kingdom at 14.6 per cent.  

Internationally, Jerusalem, the Palestinian cause and the "Deal of the Century" are considered the most pressing issues at 27.4 per cent. Wars and conflicts followed at 21.4 per cent and security, stability, terrorism and extremism at 8.6 per cent. Around 27.9 per cent indicated that they are unaware of the most urgent issues facing the international community.

AMMAN — King Ghazi Street, in the centre of downtown Amman, has now become a pedestrian-only street after being revamped, meaning that shared taxis will no longer be allowed to use the street as a pick-up location.

Previously accommodating around 220 shared taxis, the street has now become pedestrian-friendly, on par with Wakalat Street in Sweifieh, according to a Greater Amman Municipality (GAM) statement.

Director of the Transport Operations Department at GAM Khalid Abu Aleem stressed the difficulty of allowing 220 taxis on the street after its rehabilitation. 

He pointed out that “before any work was done, GAM provided an alternative location for car parking services and taxi pick-ups on Yaqout Al Hamawi Street, which is only 300 metres from King Ghazi Street”.

The decision to prohibit parking on King Ghazi Street is “irreversible”, according to Abu Aleem, as “the presence of parking and pick-up activity creates traffic obstructions at the site, which is a problem that GAM has sought to solve through the rehabilitation”.

Except for the loading and unloading of trucks, the street will now only accommodate pedestrians, which GAM said is “more in line with the nature and heritage of the site”.

Through its rehabilitation work in downtown Amman, GAM's aim is to stimulate trade and tourism activity, according to former GAM Spokesperson Mazen Farrajeen, who said that the work included “the modernisation of the entire infrastructure of rainwater drainage networks, street tiles, agricultural basins, stone pillars, lighting works and stairs”.

AMMAN — The Court of Cassation has upheld a February Criminal Court ruling sentencing a man to death after convicting him of murdering his former neighbour to avenge the killing of his brother in an eastern Amman suburb in August 2016.

The higher court also acquitted another man on charges of hiding a fugitive for lack of evidence.

The court declared the defendant guilty of premeditatedly shooting and killing the victim on August 14 and handed him the maximum punishment.

Court documents said the defendant’s brother was killed by the victim and his brothers in 2015, and eventually the entire family had to move to a different neighbourhood.

A few weeks before the incident, the court maintained, the defendant learned that the victim was released from prison and “decided to take revenge”.

“The defendant started monitoring the victim’s movements and bought a handgun,” according to court documents.

On the day of the incident, the court maintained, the defendant followed the victim, who “took a ride with his friend in a mini-van”, court papers said.

When the vehicle pulled over at a traffic light, court documents said, the defendant covered his face with a hood, descended from the vehicle and ran towards the mini-van. He “grabbed him from the head and fired eight bullets targetting his chest and stomach”.

The defendant ran back to his vehicle and sped off, court documents maintained.

“The defendant went to his neighbourhood and announced to everyone who was in the street that he was happy because he had avenged his brother’s murder, and asked his family to inform him if the victim was dead or not, since he had left in a hurry after shooting him,” according to court documents.

Meanwhile, the victim was rushed to a nearby hospital by a Civil Defence Department ambulance, but was declared dead upon arrival.

The defendant contested the verdict through his lawyer, arguing that he “did not plot the murder”.

“The shooting was in the spur of the moment and happened only when the defendant spotted the victim in a vehicle near him, descended from the mini-van and shot and killed the victim,” the defence argued.

The defence also argued that the defendant knew the address of the victim and “he could have killed him at his home and did not need to stalk him to learn about his movements. Therefore, the premeditation intent is not applicable in this case”, according to court papers.

“My client was also deprived of his right to present his defence witnesses and other evidence that could have helped him in the case,” the defence argued.

The Criminal Court’s attorney general asked the higher court to uphold the death sentence.

The higher court ruled that the Criminal Court had followed the proper procedures when sentencing the defendant and that he deserved the verdict he had received. 

“It was proven to the court that the defendant monitored the victim on several occasions to find the right time to kill him and asked his family to check if the victim did die as a result of his actions, which is a clear indication that the murder was committed in a premeditated fashion,” the higher court ruled.

The Court of Cassation judges were Mohammad Ibrahim, Naji Zu’bi, Hammad Ghzawi, Yassin Abdullat and Saeed Mugheid.