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AMMAN — Deputising for His Majesty King Abdullah, Royal Court Chief Fayez Tarawneh on Thursday met with Yasutoshi Nishimura, vice-minister of the cabinet office of Japan, and discussed means to enhance bilateral relations, as well as regional developments, especially the peace process and the situation in Syria.

Nishimura conveyed a message from Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to the King, congratulating him on Jordan’s election to the Security Council non-permanent seat and commending the Kingdom’s democratisation process.

The message also carried Japan’s appreciation of Jordan’s humanitarian assistance to Syrian refugees.

Tarawneh reiterated Jordan’s stance on the Syrian crisis, which calls for a peaceful solution that can bring an end to the suffering of the Syrian people and safeguard the territorial unity of their country.

Discussions also covered efforts to achieve peace between the Palestinians and the Israelis on the basis of the two-state solution.

AMMAN — The ICT Association of Jordan (int@j) has announced the launch of a council of ICT experts to help companies grow and support those with business ideas to turn them into income-generating projects.

The “Blue Ocean Council”, which includes a wide array of experts in the field, will help individuals start their ventures, assess their feasibility and develop a business plan, int@j Chairman Jawad Abbassi said at a gathering this week to review achievements and successes in the sector in 2013.

“The council seeks to help small companies deal with the challenges they face,” Abbassi added, stressing the importance of the ICT sector, which annually contributes about 14 per cent to the country’s gross domestic product.

According to int@j figures, some 52 ICT firms closed in 2011 due to several challenges, while 48 companies shut down their offices in 2012.

“We seek to help existing companies and even individuals with ideas for start-ups to better understand the market so that they do not end up going out of business,” Abbassi said.

The council is dedicated to providing technical and professional advisory services to individual entrepreneurs and companies in the ICT sector aiming at the development and management of new intellectual property and competitive ICT products/services, through ensuring originality, exportability, scalability and innovation, according to an int@j statement e-mailed to The Jordan Times.

“The council seeks to build and enable access to large specialised networks of business experts and mentors in various areas,” the association said.

During the event, Abbassi reviewed several achievements in the sector in 2013 and highlighted some of the challenges.

The association will start collecting data on the ICT sector’s revenues and exports starting February, he said, adding that the results are expected to be ready by early March.

Abbassi said int@j will focus on enhancing and increasing Jordan’s ICT exports in 2014.

The association is planning to open offices in the UAE, Saudi Arabia and the US to help connect Jordanian businesses in the fields with partners and peers in these countries and to increase the Kingdom’s share in projects implemented in these countries.

AMMAN — Anti-Narcotics Department (AND) and Special Forces agents conducted a raid on two marijuana farms in Balqa at dawn on Thursday, seizing one tonne of the illegal drug, official sources said.

AND agents were acting on a tip they received about several farms growing marijuana in Balqa Governorate, some 35km northwest of Amman, a senior AND official said.

“No one was at the farms during the raids, and it was a clean operation,” the official told The Jordan Times.

He added that agents are searching for two suspects believed to be involved in the marijuana farming operation.

“We know who they are and it is a matter of time before we arrest them,” he stressed.

The State Security Court prosecution has been notified about the incident to “take legal action against the farm owners”, the official added.

Thirteen people were arrested on Thursday in a police raid on nine marijuana farms and houses in Balqa Governorate.

In a similar raid earlier this month, agents stormed nine farms and houses, also in Balqa, arresting 13 suspects and seizing 200 kilogrammes of marijuana seedlings.

At the time, an AND official told The Jordan Times that the raids were planned.

“Our campaigns are ongoing against farms and houses in this area, because we know that people regularly plant marijuana here,” the official said, adding that one way to closely monitor these houses is via air surveillance.

“We take aerial photos of farms and houses then analyse them to determine what kind of seedlings are being planted in each area,” he explained.

In remarks to the media on Saturday, AND Director Col. Sami Askar said 8,945 suspects were involved in around 6,504 drug cases last year, adding that the authorities seized over 22 million Captagon pills, 444 kilogrammes of hashish and 5,007 kilos of marijuana in 2013.

According to AND statistics, 154 kilogrammes of marijuana were seized in 2011, 106 kilogrammes in 2010 and 30 kilogrammes in 2009.

AMMAN — Some 250 underprivileged families in the western suburbs of the capital received blankets, winter clothes and foodstuff on Thursday under an initiative that seeks to instil the spirit of volunteerism and social work among school students.

The assistance, donated by students at Al Hassad Tarbawi School through the National Goodwill Campaign, was delivered to beneficiaries at their homes.

The initiative is part of the campaign’s partnership with the private sector, according to the organisers.

“This initiative will be the beginning of new cooperation projects with other educational institutions,” HRH Princess Basma, president of the campaign’s higher committee, said on Thursday.

“We look forward to establishing more partnerships with the private sector to continue carrying out the goodwill campaign’s activities with utmost success,” the princess added. 

During a ceremony to honour organisers of the initiative, she called on the local community to support the campaign and its various activities.

The National Goodwill Campaign, launched by the Jordanian Hashemite Fund for Human Development in 1991, provided support worth JD1.8 million to more than 20,000 people during 2012 and 2013 and continues to be synonymous with support for the poor and the marginalised.

At the end of Thursday’s ceremony, Princess Basma honoured the donors and listened to a briefing on the school’s social work activities.

AMMAN — In defiance of the popular belief that Jordanians are too serious to laugh out loud, a gathering of 400 people were in stitches as a panel of four local satirists pondered the question: “How do Jordanians laugh?” 

Jordanians are not a serious nation, and they have proved to be quite humorous, Ad Dustour columnist Yousef Ghishan, the session’s moderator, said.

“The evidence that proves my claim is the daily comments that Jordanians make on ongoing regional and local issues. I have been following their comments on the latest blizzard and I found that they have become very funny,” Ghishan said at the discussion on Monday, organised by the Abdul Hameed Shoman Foundation. 

For panellist Musa Hijazin, a veteran local comedian, the government is what motivates Jordanians to laugh, turning each individual into a satirist.

The actor’s performance in the political satire “Alaan fahimtkum” or “Now I Understand You” has made him increasingly popular among Jordanians.

The play, which was performed for a year-and-a-half, was written by satirist and Al Rai columnist Ahmed Hassan Al Zoubi, another panellist at the discussion.

“Jordanians don’t laugh at clowns; they do have a real appreciation of constructive comedy, as they think it provides an outlet for them,” Zoubi said. 

“Jordanians have actually become excessively funny and humorous in the last three years; MPs have even started to write satirical pieces, while all Jordanians are laughing at their performance in the House,” he added jokingly.

For young cartoonist Omar Abdallat, frustration also plays a part in nurturing comedic talents.

“Because of my low academic achievement in maths, the teacher told me that I was a hopeless case and advised me to pursue a career that does not involve any intellectual activity,” said Abdallat, who produces animation videos for the Amman-based Kharabeesh network.

“In that creativity-nurturing setting, my artistic talent emerged.” 

After the discussion, parts of Hijazin, Zoubi and Abdallat’s plays and sketches were screened to laughter and applause.

AMMAN — Two children died and a third suffered smoke inhalation in a fire that broke out in a house in the capital’s Jabal Marikh suburb at noon on Thursday, official sources said.

The victims, two boys aged three and four years, died of smoke inhalation during the blaze that destroyed their entire apartment, located on the third floor, a Civil Defence Department (CDD) official said.

A 16-year-old girl also suffered smoke inhalation but was listed in good condition, the CDD official told The Jordan Times.

“The children were playing around a kerosene heater when it overturned and caused a fire,” the official explained.

The fire spread through the entire 120-square-metre home, he added.

A second source told The Jordan Times that the victims’ family had left the house for a short period to run errands and had locked the door.

“This prevented the children from escaping from the burning house,” the second source said.

Firefighters broke the lock, pulled the children out and “administered first aid to them, but it was too late”, according to the source.

“They were already dead by the time we arrived at hospital,” he added.

This is the second heater accident to claim the lives of children in less than a week.

On Sunday, a gas leakage from a heater caused a fire that claimed the lives of two children under the age of 10 in the town of Bireen in Zarqa Governorate.

CDD personnel treated five other family members for smoke inhalation.

AMMAN — Coffee vendors are crying foul over new regulations issued by the Greater Amman Municipality (GAM) for those who want to renew their licences or apply for one.

The municipality recently said it will not renew the licences of cafeteria owners who sell coffee on the street and will further tighten control over these vendors to make sure that they do not violate the regulations, according to a GAM statement made available to The Jordan Times. 

Mervat Mheirat, director of GAM’s health supervision department, told The Jordan Times over the phone that the measure is designed to ensure traffic safety and public health. 

But the new rule prohibiting vendors from handing coffee to motorists on main streets is causing major grievances for employees and business owners

Baker Slaha, 25, said he could lose his job.

"After I graduated from university, I couldn't find a decent job, so I decided to join one of these places that sell coffee to earn my pocket money," he told The Jordan Times. 

More than 150 coffee stall owners and their employees have been staging daily demonstrations outside the municipality's headquarters in Ras Al Ain since Tuesday, urging GAM not to enforce the regulations.

Abu Ismael, the president of a committee representing the protesters, said the owners of coffee shops selling hot drinks to motorists and passers-by have been experiencing the same problems for the past 10 years.  

"Every year, when I go to renew my permit, it is the same story. This morning, GAM closed down one of my shops in Amman, claiming that my employees delivered coffee to a motorist," the owner of the "Captain" chain of coffee outlets, told The Jordan Times during the demonstration. 

Farouq Rizeq, who has been working at one of Abu Ismael's shops since 2000, claimed that the decision to prohibit vendors from serving coffee to drivers will result in severe traffic jams.

"When a motorist parks his car and goes to get his coffee, it will take him at least three minutes. Imagine the number of cars that will be parked outside the shop," he noted as he prepared a cup of coffee for a customer. 

It takes only seconds for an employee to deliver the coffee to a motorist, Rizeq added.

Mutaz Silaa, who owns a coffee shop, said he will be forced to lay off 40 employees because of the regulations. 

"Many people make a living out of this business. Imagine the number of families that will be negatively affected after these regulations are enforced," he said, noting that there are around 2,150 coffee outlets in the capital.

Wael Qas, who owns six coffee shops in Amman, described some of the regulations as "harsh" and "unfair". 

"If a shop is registered as a cafeteria instead of a coffee shop, its owners are not allowed to sell coffee or tea with the snacks. Most of our customers like to have a hot drink with their sandwich," he said during the demonstration.

The majority of the outlets, he added, are registered as cafeterias. 

Abdul Aljawad Ghanem, an employee at a coffee shop in the capital, said the middle class will be affected if many outlets close down. 

"A cup of coffee costs JD0.25. If customers are forced to go to Amman's cafés, it will cost them up to JD4 for a cup," he pointed out. 

Amer Al Qaisi, another coffee shop owner, said the protesters do not oppose all the regulations. 

"I do support GAM when they prohibit people from installing flashing lights that might affect traffic," he added. 

Commenting on GAM's decision to prohibit vendors from delivering coffee to motorists, Khaled Thawabi, a taxi driver, said the municipality can set rules that please all parties. 

"They can ask vendors not to stand in the middle of the road and allow them to deliver the coffee when the client stops near the shop. They can also define a specific age for sellers to avoid child labour," Thawabi added.

He said it would be difficult for him to park and get a coffee while on the job. 

"The passenger will not agree to wait for me to get out of the cab and get a coffee, and it is not always easy to find a legal parking space near these outlets," he noted. 

Abu Ahmad Sultan warned that if GAM goes ahead with its decision, the protesters will take escalatory measures.

AMMAN — The European Union on Thursday announced an additional 20 million euros in financial assistance to Jordan help mitigate the impact of the refugee burden.

The additional assistance came through two agreements worth 20 million euros the EU signed with the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) and the UNHCR to support Jordanian authorities in ensuring safe and decent transportation to the Syrian refugees crossing into Jordan and in improving the security situation in the refugee camps.

EU Ambassador to Jordan Joanna Wronecka signed the two agreements Thursday with UNHCR Representative Andrew Harper and David Terzi, head of the IOM mission in Jordan.

The signing ceremony was also attended by Border Security Commander Brig. Gen. Hussein Zyoud and a security officer on behalf of Brig. Gen. Wadah Hmoud, director of Syrian refugee camps’ administration.

Voicing EU’s appreciation for Jordan’s “pivotal role” in providing support to the Syrian refugees, Wronecka voiced the union’s commitment to continued assistance to the refugee-burdened Kingdom.

“The new support [20 million euros] is part of the 230.9 million euros the EU has allocated in financial assistance to Jordan over the last two years aimed at mitigating the impact of the Syrian crisis on Jordan,” the ambassador said during the signing ceremony.

Also expressing gratitude for the “generosity” of Jordanian authorities and local communities towards the Syrian refugees, Wronecka added, however, that “the high numbers of Syrian refugees require significant contributions from the international community”.

“Realising the burdens the refugee crisis places on the country’s resources and the resulting enormous strain the country is put under, the EU remains deeply committed to assisting the Jordanian government in its response to the refugee crisis,” the ambassador said.

In a statement distributed to journalists, the EU said that the growth of the refugee camps in Jordan has been so fast that there is now an urgent need to enable a more systematic presence of the Jordanian authorities to help prevent security incidents in and around the refugee camps.

The UNHCR, the statement said, has entered a partnership with the recently set up Syrian Refugee Camps Department in charge of camp management and security to provide support for the police, Gendarmerie and civil defence personnel deployed at refugee camps. “Of the 20 million euros, 12 million will go to the security infrastructure provision at the refugee camps.”

The remaining 8 million euros will go to the Jordanian border guards and the IOM in material assistance to the former to help them in their efforts to ensure the safe and decent passage of Syrian refugees fleeing to Jordan and to help the latter provide capacity building and address the needs of the concerned officials, the statement said.

Harper commended the border guards’ humanitarian efforts to the Syrian refugees, saying: “In many countries around the world, border forces prevent refugees from coming into their secure territories except in Jordan, where border guards well-receive refugees and help them get into [the country]. Jordanians should be proud of their armed forces.”

He added that the UNHCR’s main mission is to make sure that the situation in Jordan would not become terrible because of the presence of more than 600,000 Syrian refugees.

Asked whether the nearly $2.4 billion donated during the recently concluded international pledging conference in Kuwait is enough, Harper said: “Not enough and never enough but a good step anyway. We are happy with the amount pledged.”  

Zyoud also said that the financial assistance to the border guards will be spent on logistic and humanitarian services offered to the Syrian refugees and not on security. 

According to EU figures, over 2 billion euros have been committed by the EU and member states in response to the Syrian crisis, making the union the world’s largest donor.

The bulk of the funds, said an EU statement, is committed to humanitarian interventions inside Syria. With an estimated 9.38 million people in need of humanitarian aid and over 6.5 million internally displaced, an increasing amount is being directed at alleviating pressures on neighbouring countries, mainly Jordan and Lebanon.

“So far, the European Commission has channelled 230.9 million euros to Jordan through humanitarian crisis response and development instruments,” the statement said.  

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah on Thursday met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and discussed the latest developments in the peace process in light of the ongoing Palestinian-Israeli negotiations.

Stressing the importance of the time factor, the Monarch called for seizing the current opportunity and building on efforts exerted by US Secretary of State John Kerry to achieve tangible progress in the peace talks, according to a Royal Court statement.

He underlined the need for the negotiations to lead to the establishment of a viable and independent Palestinian state within the pre-1967 lines that lives side-by-side with Israel, with East Jerusalem as its capital. The solution to the conflict, he reiterated, should come according to the international resolutions, the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative and the two-state formula.

King Abdullah stressed that Jordan's higher interest, especially those related to the final-status issues are "on the top of our priorities", urging all stakeholders to work for a comprehensive and just peace by ensuring the right atmosphere that renders peace talks successful.

The King's meeting with Netanyahu comes after his recent talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Kerry as part as the ongoing consultations and coordination in efforts to achieve peace, the statement read. 

AMMAN — Lower House Speaker Atef Tarawneh on Wednesday slammed the Syrian embassy in Amman for its insults against a Jordanian lawmaker who criticised Syrian President Bashar Assad under the Dome.

In its statement, the embassy carried out an “unprecedented” verbal attack on MP Abdullah Obeidat (Irbid, 5th District) in response to his strongly worded remarks against Assad during Lower House deliberations over the draft 2014 state budget, the speaker said.

Tarawneh demanded that the government investigate the embassy reaction and accordingly provide the MPs with feedback.

His request came at the beginning of the Lower House’s Wednesday session, in which he addressed the deputies and the government over the issue. 

He stressed that such behaviours by the Syrian embassy in Amman are not acceptable at all and that it “violate all diplomatic norms and protocols”, adding that the statement includes “implied threats”.

Obeidat exercised his constitutional right and expressed his own view about the Syrian crisis; his statements do not represent the Lower House’s stand, Tarawneh said.

“We have suffered from the Syrian crisis with the influx of hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees into the country, the political stands of regional powers, and finally the repeated insults against anyone who expresses opinions that oppose the Syrian embassy’s point of view,” the speaker said.

Obeidat had opened his speech in Parliament on Monday with the statement “no peace for Assad”. 

He went on to say that the Syrian president’s life will be short.

Two days later, the press office in the Syrian embassy in Amman issued a statement criticising his remarks.

The embassy called Obeidat a “nobody” and an “idiot” who insulted the “symbol of the Syrian people”.

In June last year, Syrian Ambassador to Jordan Bahjat Suleiman attacked MP Bassam Manasir, describing him as a “servant of the enemies of Syria and Jordan” after the lawmaker had called for expelling the envoy over his “provocative attitude”.

Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh said at the time that the Syrian ambassador had “violated all diplomatic norms” through his remarks and attitude, threatening to treat him as “persona non grata” should this attitude continue.