King praises Maan’s role in Jordan’s history, says Kingdom will continue to provide aid to Gaza by land, air

AMMAN — His Maj-esty King Abdullah on Thursday said Maan is a gateway of goodwill and the launching point of the Jordanian state’s es-tablishment.

Speaking at a meeting with local community leaders and figures in Maan held at the Found-ing King’s Residence and attended HRH Crown Prince Hussein, His Maj-esty praised the authen-tic values embodied by the people of Maan in welcoming pilgrims on the Hajj route, and their keenness to help every-one in need, according to a Royal Court statement.

The King recalled his visit to Maan 25 years ago, saying residents’ first request was build-ing a university in the governorate.Today, Al Hussein Bin Talal University has ush-ered in Maan’s develop-ment, His Majesty added.

The King said Maan is home to the largest solar energy projects in Jordan, as well as other projects, noting that the ambition for this gover-norate is to attract more investments, expand de-velopment and capital-ise on tourism potential in Petra.

His Majesty also spoke about the dangerous sit-uation in Gaza, stressing that Jordan is exerting its utmost efforts to stop the war on the Strip, the statement said.

The Kingdom will con-tinue to provide support and humanitarian aid by land and air, with prior-ity given to the north of Gaza, the King contin-ued, stressing that Jor-dan will not pay atten-tion to the sceptics.

Commenting on the airdrops that Jordan has carried out, His Majesty said Jordan has encour-aged Arab and friendly countries to take part in these operations, to sup-port Gazans and allevi-ate their suffering, ac-cording to the statement.

The King thanked Gazans who expressed appreciation for Jordan, although the aid deliv-ered so far is limited due to the current situation in the Strip.

The most important thing in these efforts is for Gazans to feel that Jordan is with them and will spare no ef-fort to help, His Majesty reaffirmed.

For his part, Maan Governor Faisal Masaeed said His Majesty’s Silver Jubilee is a continuation of the Hashemite journey of progress and development for Jordan.

The governor said Maan witnessed over the past 25 years several Royal initiatives and achievements in vital sectors, including health, education, agriculture, tourism, social care and income-generating projects, as well as the enhancement of the role of women and youth, and empowering civil society organisations.

Upon arrival at the Founding King’s Residence prior to the meeting, the King was welcomed by the Maan Folklore Band.