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AMMAN — Jordan and China are examining the possibility of establishing a Jordanian-Chinese university to offer education opportunities to Jordanian and Arab students and become a centre for technical education.

During a meeting with China’s Ambassador to Jordan Gao Yusheng on Monday, Higher Education Minister Amin Mahmoud said the university will help boost cultural cooperation, stressing the importance of encouraging Jordanian students to seek higher education at Chinese universities and benefit from China’s “vast expertise” in technology and industry.

Commending Jordan’s human resources, the ambassador said his country’s education ministry is waiting for the detailed plan of the proposed university to take a decision on its establishment.

AMMAN — The Jordanian People’s Democratic Party (Hashd) on Monday called on the government to review its decisions that impact the living standards of citizens.

The party warned that raising the prices of fuel derivatives will entail increases in the prices of other basic goods.

It urged against increasing taxes on individuals and companies to 25 per cent, in line with the recommendations of the International Monetary Fund, pointing out that such a step will adversely affect citizens, especially the low-income bracket.

Hashd also called for reviewing the landlords and tenants, social security and income tax laws, charging that they are in favour of the rich at the expense of the poor.

AMMAN — The initial estimate of infrastructure damage sustained as a result of the snowstorm that hit the Kingdom in December stands at around JD9 million.

Municipal Affairs Minister Walid Masri said the estimation is based on municipality reports, noting that some mayors have not yet delivered their reports to the ministry.

The actual damages will be determined when all municipalities present their reports, according to Masri, who noted that nearly 10,000 trees were damaged by the snow.

AMMAN — Jordan supports the UN mission in Libya and efforts to safeguard the country’s security, Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh said on Monday.

During a meeting with Special Representative of the UN Secretary General for Libya Tarek Mitri, Judeh reviewed the latest developments in the North African country.

Mitri briefed the foreign minister on the UN mission’s mandate, its reform efforts and role in helping the Libyan people and authorities.

Underscoring Jordan’s role in building the capabilities of Libyans, he stressed his keenness on maintaining coordination with the Kingdom, which he said will play an important role through its Security Council membership.

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah on Monday sent a cable of condolences to Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud over the passing away of Prince Bandar Bin Mohammad Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, who died on Saturday at the age of 79.

In the cable, the King expressed his deepest sympathies to the king and people of Saudi Arabia.

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah, the Supreme Commander of the Jordan Armed Forces, on Monday attended a night military drill performed by the army's Joint Special Operations Command in Zarqa.

During the drill, attended by Their Royal Highnesses Crown Prince Hussein and Prince Feisal, the King listened to a briefing on the drill, which included field exercises and the use of state-of-the-art technology for night operations, according to a Royal Court statement.

The Monarch also attended the graduation of an aviation training course for members of the Prince Hashem Bin Abdullah Brigade.

AMMAN — The Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL), also known with its Arabic acronym DAESH, is not a threat to the Kingdom, and the country’s borders are tightly controlled, sources said on Monday.

A government source speaking on condition of anonymity said the operations that ISIL is performing are in “the very heart” of Iraq and far away from the Jordanian border, and so there is no need to seal the country’s borders with its eastern neighbour.

The remarks were echoed by Minister of State for Media Affairs and Communications Mohammad Momani, who stressed that the country’s borders have never been a weak spot.

“We continue to control and guard our borders from any situation. Our border security has proven a tremendous success over years”, Momani, who is also the government spokesperson, told The Jordan Times over the phone on Monday.

ISIL, an Al Qaeda-linked faction, is currently having its control over Fallujah and parts of Ramadi in Iraq’s Anbar province, which borders the Kingdom.

According to news reports this is the first time that militants have exercised such open control in major cities since the US-led invasion in 2003.

The group also controls parts of Syria and is being battled by other Islamist rebel groups (see separate story).

The threat is considered as an unexpected scenario even by the Jihadi Salafist group in Jordan, who also denied any organisational connection to ISIL, except in “a few cases when individuals joined it”.

ISIL will not threaten the security of the Kingdom, “unless it is targeted by Jordan or any country of the region”, a local Jihadi Salafist leader told The Jordan Times on condition of anonymity.

“ISIL’ present concern is to have control on some of the Iraqi and Syrian areas, and they will not threaten the security of Jordan,” he said, a view also held by political analyst and expert in Islamic groups, Mohammad Abu Rumman, who explained that Al Qaeda has removed Jordan from its list after the killing of Jordanian Abu Musab Zarqawi, who reportedly masterminded terrorist bombings in Amman in 2005.

Although the Islamist leader stressed that there is no connection between his group in Jordan and ISIL, he claimed that there are few Jordanians who joined ISIL individually.

“We are not an organised party to have connections with ISIL, but there is communication at the personal level,” he told The Jordan Times.

Abu Rumman agreed that they are not a threat and “would not be a threat even in the future”.

“There are some exaggerations when talking about the threat that ISIL poses to Jordan,” Abu Rumman told The Jordan Times over the phone.

He attributed that to two reasons: the first is that Jordan is not a priority for ISIL, like Iraq and Syria, explaining that Jordan was a priority for Al Qaeda before 2005 at the times of Zarqawi, “who targeted the Kingdom for personal goals then”, but after the death of Zarqawi, Syria, Iraq and Lebanon topped their priority scale.

In addition, he explained that the Jordanian Jihadi Salafist group led by Abu Mohammad Maqdesi has announced sometime ago that they believe in “peaceful Daawa [preaching Islam]” and Jordan will not be a land for violent acts.

“This statement will weaken any plan to target Jordan in the future,” Abu Rumman argued.

However, he noted that the only scenario through which ISIL will threaten Jordan is if they are going to have full control over enclaves adjacent to the Jordanian borders with Syria and Iraq, “which is a far-fetched possibility”.

He explained that the Sunni community in Iraq and Syria does not consider Al Qaeda and any of its affiliate as the right candidate to fill the “political gap” in the Sunni landscape in the war-torn country.

“They are in conflict with Al Qaeda and they are defending their identity,” the analyst said, adding that the talk about the control of the Syrian-Jordanian borders being under the control of the Islamist Syrian rebel group Jabhat Al Nusra is “a big lie”.

“Jordan has a very tight grip on its borders,” he said.

Having said that, the analyst recommends that Jordan look inwards and focus on its reform programme.

AMMAN — Three people died and two persons were injured on Sunday when their vehicle overturned in Al Sultani area in Karak, according to the Civil Defence Department.

The condition of the injured ranged between critical and moderate.

AMMAN — Wael Saqqa, head of the Jordanian “Artery of Life” committee, on Sunday said the international convoy that was scheduled to leave for Gaza at the beginning of this month was waiting for the approval of Egyptian authorities to enter the strip.

Although the Egyptian authorities earlier approved the entry of the convoy, which includes a delegation from the Jordanian “Artery of Life” committee, besides international groups, the approval was later suspended, he said.

Talks are now under way with Egyptian authorities to allow the entry of the convoy, Saqqa noted.

AMMAN — Khalid Fanatseh, president the General Union of Jordanian Miners, Workers in Mining and Metal Industries on Sunday urged Jordan Phosphate Mines Company (JPMC) workers to end their current strike.

He said their financial demands are not based on any legal grounds.

Stressing the union’s concern for workers’ rights, he noted that the union has so far managed to secure many rights and benefits for its members.