Local

AMMAN — Royal Jordanian (RJ) was named one of the top 10 safest airlines in the world in 2013 by AirlineRatings.com.

According to an article that was published on the CNN news network website on Friday, the Jordanian national carrier shared the seven-star rating and won a place among the top 10 safest airlines next to a number of giant international and Arab airlines including Air New Zealand, All Nippon Airways, Cathay Pacific Airways, Emirates, Etihad Airways, Eva Air, Singapore Airlines, Virgin Atlantic.

The first ranked was the Australian airline Qantas.

The article stated that out of the 448 airlines surveyed by AirlineRatings.com, 137 have a top seven-star rating, which makes it often difficult to distinguish the largest and most reliable carriers apart from a safety point of view.

Through a team of aviation editors, the website cites the carriers' fatality-free flying record from the beginning of the jet era in the early 1950s. The team forensically researches nearly every airline in the world.

Along with fatality crash records and audits from aviation governing bodies, the website takes into account the quality of the "in-flight product" airlines offer, including in-flight entertainment, seating and food in order to determine their ranking.

His Majesty King Abdullah on Saturday tweeted his congratulations to RJ for the achievement, commending the efforts of current and former employees of the national carrier.

“I applaud all @RoyalJordanian employees past & present for their efforts in making RJ among the world’s top 10 safest airlines,” the King said on the Royal Court Twitter account @RHCJO

“We are proud to attain this prestigious international ranking in the area of aviation safety, an issue that has always been at the top of our pyramid of priorities,” RJ President/CEO Amer Hadidi said in a statement emailed to The Jordan Times Saturday.

This reflects the effectiveness of RJ’s employees, the airline’s keenness to apply the highest safety standards in the air and on the ground, and to provide its passengers with distinguished services, Hadidi added. 

The carrier was one of the first international airlines to obtain the IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) in 2004. It renews it every year with no irregularity ever found, according to Hadidi.

“Being ranked one of the top 10 safest airlines in the world comes in parallel with Royal Jordanian’s celebration of its golden jubilee; it confirms its pedigree as an outstanding carrier in the region, and is proof of its efficient, secure and safe regular operations over the past five decades,” the RJ president said.

AMMAN — A US delegation from St. Olaf College in Minnesota on Thursday met with representatives of the We are All Jordan Youth Commission and discussed the reform process and Jordanians’ participation in the country’s political and democratic life.

The delegates are currently on a visit to the Kingdom to share their experiences with their Jordanian counterparts.

The coordinator of the commission’s programmes, Ahmad Jarbee, highlighted the role of the commission in empowering young people with knowledge and leadership skills.

KARAK — A total of 257 families in Karak benefited from JD241,000 worth of projects implemented by credit funds established by the Social Development Ministry last year, Barq Dmour, director of the ministry’s department in Karak, said on Thursday.

He added that 11 households were presented with income-generating projects valued at JD22,000 in 2013, while some 308 underprivileged people were offered health insurance.

The ministry also presented JD66,000 in assistance to societies in Karak, along with JD24,000 provided by the Royal Court to support development projects.

MAFRAQ — Al Kitab and Sunna Society on Thursday inaugurated an orphanage for 50 Syrian orphans in Mafraq, according to its president, Zayed Hammad.

He said the fully equipped facility, which seeks to alleviate the hardships of orphans who escaped the Syrian conflict, has begun receiving children and providing them with their daily needs.

AMMAN — The Lower House Legal Committee, chaired by MP Abdul Munim Odat, on Thursday discussed bilateral cooperation with British Ambassador to Jordan Peter Millett.

Odat called on the international community to bear its legal, ethical and humanitarian responsibilities towards Jordan to enable it to continue providing care for Syrian refugees.

He noted that the committee members will pay a visit to the British House of Commons next week to become acquainted with the parliamentary experience in the UK.

AMMAN — The police on Thursday arrested five people for their suspected involvement in a shooting incident near two restaurants in Jabal Amman on Wednesday evening over personal and financial disagreements with the valet contractor of the two restaurants.

Police officers had first detained two suspects, and further investigation revealed that they hired three people to target the restaurants, according to the Public Security Department (PSD).

The police traced the three suspects and arrested them.

One of them was found in possession of a pump action rifle, which was confirmed to be the weapon used in the shooting.

AJLOUN/MAFRAQ — Anas Shaker Smadi, 35, died on Thursday and his brother Laith Smadi was injured when their car overturned in Al Wahadneh Square in Ajloun.

Ajloun Civil Defence Department (CDD) Director Col. Hani Smadi said the injured man was taken to Al Iman Hospital.

Also on Thursday, one man died and another was injured when their car, which has a Saudi licence plate, overturned on a road in Mafraq Governorate.

CDD personnel took the injured man to Mafraq Public Hospital, where he was listed in fair condition.

AMMAN — Chairman of the Joint Chiefs-of-Staff Gen. Mashal Al Zaben on Thursday met with a Yemeni military delegation, headed by Commander of the Yemeni Air Force and Air Defence Maj. Gen. Rashed Nasser Al Jund.

Discussions covered means to enhance cooperation between the two countries’ armies.

AMMAN — A 16-year-old boy died of his injuries on Wednesday after being shot by a “wanted man” who was arrested a short while later, the Public Security Department (PSD) said.

The man, an ex-convict who is wanted on 18 security counts, claimed that he was just shooting in the air in the capital’s Jabal Al Taj neighbourhood and did not mean to kill the boy, the PSD said.

IRBID — Senate President Abdur-Ra’uf S.

Rawabdeh on Thursday said the vast majority of young Jordanians “abhor” violence, urging “the minority group” that resorts to violence to reconsider its behaviour in a country that respects the rule of law.

Attending the first forum for combating university violence, organised by the Bani Obeid Youth Commission in cooperation with the Higher Youth Council (HYC), Rawabdeh voiced his rejection of dragging tribes into brawls that take place on university campuses.

“Tribes are innocent of university violence and they should not be linked to such practices,” he said.

HYC President Sami Majali said the council has launched a national campaign to fight this phenomenon.