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AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah on Sunday sent a cable to Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani offering condolences over the death of his mother.

In the cable, the King expressed his warmest sympathies to Rouhani.

AMMAN — Northern Region Preventive Security Department personnel have detained five suspects in Ramtha found in possession of $1,000 and JD800 in fake bills, one kilogramme of hashish and two pistols, the Public Security Department (PSD) said Sunday.

According to a PSD statement, preventive security staff received a tip that some people were selling counterfeit currency in Ramtha, some 90km north of Amman, after which the department placed patrols and ambushes to look for the suspects’ vehicle and arrest them.

The PSD said one patrol detected the vehicle, stopped it and found the illegal items onboard.

The patrol unit arrested the five suspects who are currently being questioned.

In another case, Northern Region Preventive Security Department officers arrested a suspect found in possession of antiques after receiving a tip that he was selling them, the PSD said.

Some of the seized items turned out to have historical value, the PSD added, and the suspect is currently being interrogated.

AMMAN — Planning Minister Imad Fakhoury on Sunday met with Ambassador of the Netherlands to Jordan Paul van den Ijssel to discuss bilateral ties and development cooperation.

Fakhoury expressed appreciation for the support the Netherlands has extended to Jordan over the past few years to help it address some of the challenges brought on by the influx of Syrian refugees into the country, according to a Planning Ministry statement. 

The minister also highlighted that the government will work to mobilise necessary funding to implement the Jordan Response Plan 2015, emphasising the importance of assistance from donors.

He discussed funding instruments currently available, including the Jordan Resilience Trust Fund, which is being established in cooperation with UNDP. 

The Dutch ambassador reiterated that his government is committed to continuing its support for Jordan “at these difficult times” on a bilateral level and within the international community.

Both parties discussed preparations for “Kuwait III”, the upcoming pledging conference that will take place in the city of Kuwait later this month.

The Dutch ambassador highlighted that the Netherlands’ delegation will be headed by the Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation Lilianne Ploumen.

Fakhoury also met with the Chargé d’ Affaires of the British embassy and the development counsellor, the statement said. 

The minister thanked the United Kingdom for its support to Jordan on both development and humanitarian fronts, while underlining the importance of the UK as a strategic partner to Jordan. 

He highlighted reform priorities for the next three years and provided an overview of Jordan’s development agenda, including updates on the “Jordan 2025” vision. 

Moreover, the minister praised the British embassy’s efforts in helping with the preparation process for the Jordan Response Plan 2015 and its support in implementing it.

AMMAN — The Public Security Department (PSD) on Sunday organised a one-day campaign sparing motorists committing non-dangerous violations from fines.

“We decided to hold this campaign to raise people’s awareness and encourage them not to commit violations,” said Maj. Jalal Rahahleh, director of public relations at the Central Traffic Department.

The campaign motto is: “Be proud you are a true Jordanian through abiding by the Traffic Law.” 

Any violating motorist was pulled over and handed a brochure instead of a ticket encouraging her/him to abide by traffic regulations and wishing them safe driving, according to a statement issued by the PSD.

Rahahleh said motorists who committed dangerous traffic violations such as exceeding the speed limit by a wide margin, crossing a red light and driving in the opposite direction were fined.

This procedure, Rahahleh added, was applied all around the Kingdom. 

“We have printed 30,000 awareness brochures to distribute to violating motorists,” the traffic official explained.

“Our intention is not to collect money from fines. We want to encourage motorists to abide by the Traffic Law and drive safely,” Rahahleh stressed.

AMMAN — Jordan and Palestine organised a conference in Ankara on Saturday to highlight the importance of Jerusalem and the Muslim world's role in protecting the holy city from Israeli attempts to Judaise it.

Titled "Jerusalem: the City of Peace", the conference was held by the embassies of Jordan and Palestine in Ankara in cooperation with the Arab League, and under the joint patronage of His Majesty King Abdullah and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

Experts from Jordan, Turkey, Palestine and Morocco discussed means to prevent the desecration of occupied Jerusalem's Muslim and Christian sites.

Speaking at the conference, Awqaf Minister Hayel Dawood said the most dangerous threat to the holy city lies in Jewish extremists' attempt to divide Al Aqsa Mosque complex, with the aim of Judaising some of its corners.

Jordan, he stressed, is working to counter this in cooperation with the Arab League, UNESCO, the Organisation for Islamic Cooperation and the Security Council, in addition to using its peace accord with Israel to maintain the Arab identity of the city.

Jordan's Ambassador to Turkey Amjad Adaileh told Petra that discussions at the conference are also aimed at promoting religious tourism to Jerusalem, noting that it is being held after Turkish, Palestinian and Jordanian travel agents signed a deal to facilitate the visit of 100,000 Turkish pilgrims to Jerusalem through Jordan.  

AMMAN — Jordan and Russia will sign an intergovernmental agreement before the end of this month in which the two sides stress commitment to supporting the country's first nuclear power plant, according to Jordan Atomic Energy Commission (JAEC) Chairman Khaled Toukan.

The agreement, which will be signed in Amman, represents the legal and political framework between the governments of the two countries and highlights their support of the plan, which entails building two nuclear reactors with a total capacity of 2,000 megawatts (MW) and at a total cost of $10 billion.

Under the agreement, Jordan will have the option to return nuclear fuel waste to Russia, said Toukan at a meeting with reporters last week, adding that the age of the reactor is 60 years.

Russia will provide enriched nuclear fuel for the reactors for the first 10 years after which Jordan has the option of whether to buy nuclear fuel from Russia or any other markets as it will seek the "most suitable price", said Toukan.

When signed, the deal will be referred to Lower House for endorsement, said the JAEC chairman.

In October 2013, Jordan contracted Russia's Rosatom to build the country’s first two nuclear reactors that are expected to be operational by 2022.

Under the deal, Rosatom has agreed to take on 49 per cent of the plants’ $10 billion construction and operation costs on a build-own-operate basis, with the government shouldering the remaining 51 per cent and retaining a majority share in the plants.

Toukan said that Jordan is currently in talks with several regional and international investors who showed interest in financing the project and partnering with Jordan. "I expect that we will hear positive news in this respect at the end of this year," said Toukan.

Jordan, which imports 97 per cent of its energy needs annually at a total cost of 20 per cent of the GDP, has become the third Arab state to pursue peaceful nuclear energy, with the United Arab Emirates set to build four reactors with a combined 5,600MW capacity by 2020 and Egypt reaffirming in 2013 its plans to establish a 1,000MW reactor by the end of the decade.  

AMMAN — The government on Saturday denounced terrorist attacks, which targeted two mosques and worshippers in Sanaa, the capital of Yemen, on Friday.  

The government denounced all acts of violence that the Yemeni people are facing, including the attacks against the country’s elected leaders and attempts to seize control of Aden International Airport. 

Minister of State for Media Affairs and Communications Mohammad Momani, who is also the government spokesperson, said such acts seek to fuel unrest and disrupt the political transition process in Yemen, according to the Jordan News Agency, Petra. 

Jordan renewed its support for Yemen’s unity, sovereignty and independence, and efforts exerted for the resumption of the political process.

Momani reaffirmed the country’s rejection of any intervention in Yemen’s internal affairs and of any attempts to undermine its domestic security.

AMMAN — Amman will host a series of intergovernmental events held by the UN Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) this week, attended by experts in the areas of energy, water and food security, according to an ESCWA statement.

The events will begin on Sunday with the 10th Session of the ESCWA Committee on Energy, and will include the Arab Launch of the United Nations Decade of Sustainable Energy for All 2014-2024, the statement said.

AMMAN — Demand on water in the Kingdom has increased by 21 per cent and by 40 per cent in the northern region as a result of hosting hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees, Water Minister Hazem Nasser said Saturday.

The refugee crisis costs the water sector JD360 million every year, the minister said at a meeting with sector representatives, adding that Jordan is facing a water emergency because of the increasing number of refugees, global warming, the scarcity of rainwater, and regional crises.

By the year 2025, 904 million people in the Mediterranean Basin, Western Asia and the Middle East are expected to suffer a shortage of drinking water, according to Nasser.

AMMAN — Health Minister Ali Hiasat and Public Works Minister Sami Halaseh have issued directives to form joint technical teams to complete the Northern Badia Hospital project.

Both ministers on Saturday checked the progress of the project, which costs more than JD22 million.

Hiasat said the 100-bed hospital will enhance medical services in Northern Badia with its advanced medical equipment.