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AMMAN — The “First Tourism Convention of 2019”, one of a series of conferences planned to discuss boosting religious and medical tourism to Jordan, was held on Saturday.

The convention, according to its President Monther Qaisi, was “a response to His Majesty King Abdullah’s directions to focus on the tourism sector, particularly medical tourism”.

Being the first of its kind this year, the conference mainly discussed research recently conducted on the field, and how the findings might benefit Jordan’s tourism sector.

“For now, stakeholders are laying out the current situation, and how it can be improved. The consecutive meetings will focus on implementing strategies directed at promoting religious and medical tourism,” said Batoul Maali, one of the event’s organisers.

Head of the Great Arab Revolt Club Baker Majali said in a speech given at the conference that Jordan must “take advantage of its strategic position in the region” and start “promoting itself as an investment opportunity”.

He added: “We are in the heart of the Middle East. Not only that, but we are also one of the few stable countries in it. That should be our angle.”

The ways in which Jordan might promote itself was the focus of Qaisi’s research paper, which he said “provided an inclusive and modern advertising model for the Kingdom to adopt”, by focusing on online audiences.

One of the main types of tourism the ministry plans to emphasise this year — religious tourism, was also focused on at the convention.

The main temples, shrines and castles significant in both Muslim and Christian religions were pointed to by the Director of the Dana Reserve Yousef Zreiqat, who said the attractions “must be given more attention as a first step to stimulating religious tourism”.

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah on Sunday paid tribute to sanitation worker Imad Salameh, who died in an “irresponsible” traffic accident. His Majesty, in a Tweet in Arabic, said that protecting “our sons and daughters” who work tirelessly in service of the homeland is a sacred duty.

King Abdullah continued: “The souls and blood of Jordanians are priceless.” Salameh lost his life in a traffic accident on Saturday in Balqa Governorate’s Safout neighbourhood.

AMMAN — Prime Minister Omar Razzaz on Sunday visited Abdul Hamid Sharaf Vocational School for Boys, the oldest vocational school in Jordan. During his visit, the premier toured facilities and vocational workshops aimed at improving vocational training and the industry.

The prime minister was also briefed on an initiative called “our seats”, which maintains school desks and was launched through a partnership between the Education Ministry, the private sector and civil society associations. The initiative includes 500 students, 80 supervisors and 22 teachers.

In the last two years it has maintained 65,000 seats. During his visit, Razzaz affirmed the importance of training students on vocational and industrial work to support industry in Jordan, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

AMMAN — A rise in temperatures is expected for today, with cold conditions forecast for most areas of the Kingdom. Light and scattered rainfall is expected through the morning in the Kingdom, especially in the northern region, according to the Jordan Meteorological Department (JMD).

The JMD said Amman’s Monday temperatures will range between 15°C and 6°C. The northern region’s temperatures are forecast to be between 14°C and 5°C, while the southern region should see a high of 13°C and a low of 3°C.

Temperatures in Aqaba will reach a high of 26°C and a low of 14°C. Temperatures are expected to continue rising on Tuesday.

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah recently received 52 per cent of the votes in a poll conducted by Al Jazeera on the most influential figure.

The channel, in a poll that was posted on its social media accounts, listed four figures including King Abdullah, head of Sudan’s military council Abdel Fattah Burhan, who received 31 per cent of the votes, and US Representative Ilhan Omar who received 15 per cent.

The newly appointed President of the Constitutional Council of Algeria Kamel Feniche received 2 per cent of the votes in the poll won by King Abdullah for the third time in less than a year.

AMMAN — Honorary President of Jordan Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) HRH Prince Hassan opened MAP’s new clinic in Talbieh refugee camp on Sunday. During a ceremony to open the clinic, Prince Hassan spoke of his concerns for refugees and called on NGOs and aid groups to work together.

The new clinic was partially funded by donations from the Indonesian zakat fund, Badan Amil Zakat Nasional (Baznas), LDS Charities and the Jordan Hashemite Charity, according to a statement from Prince Hassan’s office.

Paying thanks to the Baznas fund for their donations, Prince Hassan said: “Security is not just about weapons of mass destruction or a fight against terrorism.

We must seek out democratic security for all people. We must fight always for human dignity and place it at the centre of every project and initiative. Human capital is the only real capital worth fighting for.”

AMMAN — Prime Minister Omar Razzaz and Secretary of India's Ministry of Skill Development And Entrepreneurship K.P. Krishnan on Sunday met on enhancing cooperation in several fields, especially in IT, skill development and entrepreneurship. 

Razzaz, during the meeting, referred to His Majesty King Abdullah's recent visit to India, on which he was accompanied by a private-public delegation that restored great momentum to Jordanian-Indian ties. 

The premier commended India's development in all fields, especially in the IT sector, noting the Kingdom's keenness to take advantage of the advanced Indian experience in the field of entrepreneurship and skill development, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. 

He explained that Jordan’s distinguished location could encourage Indian companies to enter the region’s markets. 

For his part, Krishnan expressed his country’s keenness to enhance bilateral ties, highlighting the possibility of expertise exchange in the field of IT, in which the country has leading experience, Petra added.

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah on Sunday condemned the terrorist attacks that targeted churches and hotels in Sri Lanka and resulted in more than 207 deaths and scores of injuries. 

In a cable to Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena, King Abdullah voiced Jordan’s solidarity with Sri Lanka in facing the threat of terrorism and its extremist organisations, according to a Royal Court statement. 

His Majesty, in the cable, also expressed his deep sorrow and heartfelt condolences to the Sri Lankan president and people, as well as to the families of the victims, wishing the injured a speedy recovery. 

The government also expressed condemnation over the series of deadly bombings targeting Easter services on Sunday.

Minister of State for Media Affairs and Government Spokesperson Jumana Ghunaimat stressed that “these heinous attacks need international counterterrorism efforts”.

Ghunaimat renewed the Kingdom's rejection of all forms of violence and terrorism against innocent people and worshippers, voicing solidarity with Sri Lanka.

Around eight blasts hit church worshippers, celebrating Easter Sunday, along with hotels in Colombo claiming the lives of more than 207 people and injuring some 450, according to AFP.

The Sri Lankan authorities reported that there were between 27 and 35 foreigners among the victims of the terrorist attack, but there were no Jordanians among them, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Sufian Qudah said in a statement.

He noted that ministry officials followed up with the Jordanian Embassy in New Delhi, which confirmed that no Jordanians were among the victims or the injured, the statement said.

AMMAN — The Arab region is at a crossroads and is facing enormous challenges that require unified efforts and integrated roles to move development forward, President of the Arab Inter-Parliamentary Union and Lower House Speaker Atef Tarawneh said on Saturday.

Participating in the Baghdad-hosted parliamentary conference of Iraq’s neighbouring countries, Tarawneh called for supporting Iraq in building a modern country, especially after suffering from the repercussions of occupation, war and terrorism, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

During the conference — which saw the participation of heads of parliaments of Iraq, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Syria, Turkey and Iran — the speaker highlighted the importance of consolidating the relationships between Iraq’s neighbouring countries, noting that these countries “share the same destiny”.

He also referred to the dire need for further cooperation among the participating countries in light of the difficult challenges the region is going through, adding that it is futile to stay isolaed from other countries. 

Participating countries have to agree on set priorities, to keep in sight the huge injustices the region is facing, particularly the continuation of Israeli occupation of Arab territories, its violations towards the rights of the Palestinian people and the attacks against Jerusalem, Tarawneh added.

In this regard, the speaker expressed Jordan’s pride in His Majesty King Abdullah’s custodianship over Islamic and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem.

He stressed that the lack of joint action contributes to feeding terrorism and extremism among young people, who have become full of despair and frustration in light of the absence of the principles of justice and equality.

These conditions require all to support education and address ignorance, as well as offer healthcare programmes and provide jobs for the youth, to build on the military success achieved against terrorism on the ideological and social levels, Tarawneh stressed.

Iraqi parliament speaker, Mohammed Al Halbousi, who chaired the gathering in Baghdad, said that “what binds us to our neighbours is our common geographical destiny and common interests”.

The visiting officials pledged support for reconstruction and development efforts in Iraq and for the country’s continued stability following its victory over Daesh, after three years of war, Reuters said.

AMMAN — HRH Crown Prince Hussein on Friday launched an initiative to preserve the status and integrity of Arabic, while developing techniques to increase its digitisation compatibility, and enrich online Arabic content.

In a video message to launch the initiative, named “Dhad” in reference to the distinctive sound and letter unique to the Arabic language, the Crown Prince noted the importance of increasing Arabic content and promoting research in Arabic to ensure it remains a strong, global language.

The initiative, affiliated with the Crown Prince Foundation, will seek to train Arabic ambassadors who would promote using the language in scientific disciplines, communication and various fields of technology, according to a Royal Court statement.

The initiative will also include organising events in the governorates in cooperation with relevant institutions.

Further information on the initiative is available online at http://inarabic.cpf.jo.