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AMMAN — Chairman of the Joint Chiefs-of-Staff Lt. Gen. Mahmoud Freihat on Wednesday received  Kuwaiti Defence Attaché in Amman Brig. Gen. Turki Al Mashaal, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

They discussed ways to improve bilateral ties between the armed forces of the two countries. Upon a Royal Decree, Freihat awarded Al-Mashaal with the Order of Merit of Second Class, in recognition of his efforts.

Also on Wednesday, Freihat received deputy principal cyber adviser to the US secretary of defence, Maj. Gen. Burke Wilson and his accompanying delegation.

During the meeting, which was attended by the American military attache in Amman, they discussed ways to enhance joint cooperation and means of enhancing bilateral relations between the armed forces of the two countries. 

AMMAN — HRH Princess Basma, honorary goodwill ambassador for the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), on Wednesday attended the launching ceremony of the 2017 updated document of population opportunity policies, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The document comes at a time when Jordan is facing a demographical change leading to a strategic population increase, which could bring about positive impacts on the economic and social fabric of the country.

The population opportunity appears when the rate of individuals able to work, whose ages range between 15 and 64, “greatly exceeds” the rate of dependent individuals, those under the age of 15 and those older than 65, according to the document.

AMMAN — HRH Prince Mired, chairman of the Hashemite Commission for Disabled Soldiers, on Wednesday thanked the Electricity for Energy Investments Company for its donation to the commission, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The prince awarded Ghaleb Sammak, the company’s general manager, the commission’s shield in appreciation of his efforts to enhance the social partnership between the two parties.

AMMAN — Agriculture Minister Khaled Hneifat on Wednesday announced the arrival of the first batch of imported wood for heating purposes, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

Hneifat said that the decision to import tax-free wood came to mitigate the issue of illegal logging and to preserve the forestlands. More shipments are scheduled to enter the Kingdom in the near future, he noted. 

AMMAN — HRH Princess Ghida Talal, chairperson of the King Hussein Cancer Foundation’s board of trustees, on Wednesday announced the launch of a new mission that will consist of the climbing of Mount Elbrous, the highest mountain in Europe, under an initiative dubbed “From the lowest point to the highest peak to fight cancer”.

The mission will be headed by Jordanian mountaineer Mustafa Salameh and aims at collecting $1 million for patients of the King Hussein Cancer Centre, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. Princess Ghida expressed her pride in cooperating with the initiative that aims to support cancer patients through fundraising. 

AMMAN — Senate President Faisal Fayez stressed that it is not Jordan which started the Syrian crisis, wondering why the Kingdom has been bearing the responsibility and repercussions of the refugee influx.

During his address to the attendees of the 8th Bosphorus Summit in Istanbul, he called on the international community to support the Kingdom financially to help it face the economic and security challenges that emerged from the regional conflicts, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

In a session dedicated to the refugee crisis and overcoming humanitarian challenges, the Senate president noted that Jordan has received several refugee influxes since its independence, starting in 1948 and 1967 when it received Palestinians. 

AMMAN — The State Security Court (SSC) on Wednesday sentenced a defendant to ten years of hard labour for plotting to carry out a terrorist attack targeting military buses, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The defendant, who is a supporter of Daesh terror group, has been held in custody since November 2016.

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah on Tuesday met with the US Senate leadership, and the chairs and members of the Senate Committee on Appropriations and the Committee on Armed Services at the House of Representatives, as well as US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.

The Capitol Hill meetings, partly attended by Her Majesty Queen Rania, covered ways to enhance Jordan-US cooperation in various areas, particularly in the economic and military fields, according to a Royal Court statement.

Discussions also addressed renewing the memorandum of understanding on US economic support for Jordan for the coming years.

The two sides discussed the programmes and reforms implemented by Jordan to bolster its economic resilience in the face of regional challenges.

King Abdullah voiced Jordan’s appreciation of the US' support to enable the Kingdom to implement development programmes and shoulder the burden of the Syrian refugee crisis, commending the Congress major role in this regard.

Turning to the Palestinian issue, His Majesty affirmed the importance of pushing the Palestinian-Israeli peace process forward, based on the two-state solution and international terms of reference, arriving at the establishment of an independent Palestinian state, with East Jerusalem as its capital, living side by side with Israel.

Reaching a just and permanent solution to the Palestinian issue will bring security and stability to the entire region, the King said.

The meetings also covered developments in the Middle East and efforts to reach political solutions to regional crises.

Commenting on the Syrian crisis, His Majesty said the tripartite agreement between Jordan, the US and Russia to secure a ceasefire in southern Syria and establish a de-escalation zone will help create an environment conducive to reaching a political solution through the Geneva process.

In the fight against terrorism, the King stressed the importance of intensifying international coordination and cooperation within a holistic approach.

For their part, the US lawmakers commended Jordan’s positions, led by His Majesty, on various regional issues, as well as the King’s efforts to bolster peace and stability in the region.

At the meeting with Secretary of State Tillerson — held within the ongoing Jordanian-US coordination and consultation — discussions covered regional and international developments, in addition to efforts to jumpstart the peace process.

The two sides affirmed the need to support efforts to reach political solutions to regional crises, and restore security and stability for the region’s peoples.

His Majesty reiterated the importance of the US’ role in securing peace between the Palestinians and the Israelis.

Discussions at the meeting also covered developments in Syria and Iraq, in addition to regional and international efforts to fight terrorism within a holistic strategy.

 Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi, Director of the Office of His Majesty Jafar Hassan, Planning Minister Imad Fakhoury and Jordan’s Ambassador in Washington, DC, Dina Kawar attended the meetings.

AMMAN — A “wall of kindness” recently popped up in front of the Landmark hotel in Jabal Amman, inviting generous souls to donate clothes for the most in need ahead of the winter season.

“We wanted to find a way for the less fortunate to receive warm winter clothes without feeling the need to ask anyone,” said Layla Al-Qasim, head of strategic engagement and sustainability projects at the Landmark.

Designed in the public and free of access area outside of the hotel, the “Wall of Kindness” was inaugurated last week, marking the first day of the rainy season.

“We wanted to see it launched when it first rained in Amman, so that people would feel the need for warm clothes and realise it can be a difficult time for those who do not have these items,” explained Mary Nazzal-Batayneh, the founder of the Landmark hotels who initiated the idea.

“People who want to donate clothes can come and deposit them on the hangers attached to the wall. They do it anonymously without anyone knowing. Then, our laundry team at the hotel picks up the clothes, cleans them, folds them, wraps them up and hangs them back so they are available for the recipients, just like brand new items,” Al-Qasim told The Jordan Times at the hotel.

Batayneh said that since they launched the project last week, clothes have been deposited daily, voicing hopes that the phenomenon will keep growing.

“It is not only this specific wall that is important, but the effect it will have, and the ideas it will keep inspiring people,” she continued, noting “we hope this wall will have a small but positive tangible impact on our local community”.

Communicating about the initiative on social media platforms, Al-Qasim stressed that “we also want to reach out to people who do not have access to Internet. We try to spread the word through the radio, word of mouth, newspapers, etc”.

She noted that “since this is aimed to help the less fortunate, we need to find accessible ways for them to learn about the initiative.”

Set up to let people donate and receive the items anonymously, the wall seeks to promote generosity and humanity, away from the media exposure surrounding some winter donation campaigns.

The “first project of its kind” in Amman, the Wall of Kindness was inspired by the first initiative launched in Iran to help the homeless people of Mashhad in 2015, according to Al Qasim.

The initiative has since spread to the cities of Karachi in Pakistan, Liuzhou in China, Rome, numerous cities in India, and many others, according to web sources.

“We encourage people to donate and to take what they need,” the hotel founder concluded.

AMMAN  — The Jordanian Hashemite Fund for Human Development (JOHUD) on Monday celebrated its 40 year anniversary, honouring its various partners for the joint work exerted to enhance human and social development in Jordan.

HRH Princess Basma, chairperson of JOHUD’s board of trustees and patron of the ceremony, said at the event: “The fund’s achievements over the past 40 years would not have been possible without the effective partnerships with the various institutions of the public and private sectors, the civil society and international organisations working in Jordan.”

Held under the title “Commemorating 40 years of Partnership Looking Towards the Future”, the ceremony was attended by several ministers, ambassadors and representatives of local and international organisations, in addition to JOHUD partners.

During her speech, the princess highlighted the importance of the trust, credibility, hard work and devotion of JOHUD and its partners in providing the best services to the Jordanian people, and in pushing forward the human, social and economic development process in the Kingdom.

She stressed JOHUD’s commitment to these partnerships and the fund’s keenness on developing them.

Princess Basma highlighted that the fund has become a “hub for expertise” in finding successful tools to meet development challenges through its specialised entities and centres, especially in the area of poverty alleviation and unemployment.

JOHUD’s Executive Director Farah Daghistani outlined the fund’s main programmes in tackling poverty and unemployment, noting that the 51 Princess Basma centres for development reach around 1 million beneficiaries per year.

Daghistani also reviewed the programmes and activities carried out by the Princess Basma Community Development Centres  across the Kingdom, which target various segments of society.

Qais Tarawneh, director of the Queen Zain Al Sharaf Institute for Development, JOHUD’s training arm, presented the work mechanism in the social support network targeting the most vulnerable categories.

JOHUD is the oldest and largest nongovernmental organisation dedicated to promoting rights based, sustainable human development in Jordan, a JOHUD statement said.