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AMMAN — The government on Wednesday renewed its condemnation of violations committed by Jewish extremists against Al Aqsa Mosque and other places of worship in the occupied West Bank.

Government Spokesperson Mohammad Momani condemned the Jewish settlers’ forceful entry into Al Aqsa Mosque complex under the protection of Israeli security forces.

He also denounced the arson attack committed by Jewish settlers targeting Ali Bin Aby Taleb Mosque in Salfit governorate.

Describing the attacks as violations of international laws and all monotheistic religions, Momani urged Israel — as the occupying force of Palestinian territories — to safeguard the freedom of worship at holy sites and ensure that they are not desecrated.

Jordan, he added, will continue exerting all efforts to protect Muslim and Christian sites and lobby the international community to end all Israeli violations.

AMMAN — The Gendarmerie Department on Wednesday launched the second Jordanian-European twinning project, which is aimed at building the capacity of its personnel.

During the ceremony, Gendarmerie Department Director General Maj. Gen. Ahmad Sweilmin said the project will support the department’s centre for specialised regional training and improve human resources management.

AMMAN — Interior Minister Hussein Majali on Wednesday met with Deputy Director General of the French Gendarmerie Lt. Gen. Richard Lizurey and discussed prospects for further cooperation.

Talks also covered ways to develop security cooperation, particularly in light of the changes witnessed in the region, which require more efforts to maintain stability.

AMMAN — Senate President Abdur-Ra’uf S. Rawabdeh on Wednesday met with Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh, who highlighted the latest developments in the Palestinian-Israeli negotiations.

The minister underlined Jordan’s support for the Palestinians and their legitimate rights.

Rawabdeh stressed the Senate’s interest in continued coordination with the Foreign Ministry.

AMMAN — Chairman of the Joint Chiefs-of-Staff Gen. Mashal Al Zaben on Wednesday met with a US military delegation chaired by Lt. Gen. Robert B. Neller, commander of the US Marine Corps Forces, Central Command.

At the meeting, attended by HRH Prince Feisal, discussions focused on increasing cooperation between the Jordanian and US armies and enhancing bilateral ties.

AMMAN — Egypt’s new constitutional text resurrects the long-time dominance of the army in the politics of the Arab world’s most populous country, according to Egyptian political scientist Amr Hamzawy.

Addressing an audience of intellectuals, journalists and researchers at the Columbia University Middle East Research Centre on Sunday, Hamzawy said Egyptians are called upon to say “yes” or “no” to a new constitution that has the same mistakes of the 2012 constitution drafted during Egypt’s ousted president Mohamed Morsi’s one-year rule.

No public debates have been organised on the new constitution, which was written by a 48-member committee who were appointed and not elected, he noted in his lecture, titled “Why did Egypt’s Democratic Transition Come to a Halt?”

Under the new constitutional text, which Hamzawy described as a setback to Egypt’s democratisation, the president-elect will not be able to appoint the army chief nor will it be possible for the parliament to discuss the security budget. 

He added that the draft constitution stipulates the trial of civilians before military tribunals.  

“If the Egyptian army was a state within a state, it is now becoming a state over the state.”

For Hamzawy, public freedoms, mainly the right to belief and to practise religious rituals are still not fully safeguarded in the 2013 draft constitution, as was the case in the 2012 constitution that was drafted by the Muslim Brotherhood in hopes of ruling Egypt in the same manner as ousted president Hosni Mubarak did.

“One of Morsi’s many mistakes is that he built alliances with the same political powers Mubarak allied himself with,” the political scientist argued.

Hamzawy, a former MP, also said that Egypt’s politics have been shaped by the longstanding struggle between the state and the Brotherhood, which has caused, and is still causing, a state of “severe polarisation” within the Egyptian community and political forces. 

“You are either with the state or with the Muslim Brotherhood. Nothing in between,” Hamzawy said.

“This has led to the marginalisation of the dynamics of political forces within Egyptian society, weakening their ability to forge a space between the two giants [the army and the Islamists].”

This state of binary politics is also one of the reasons that have brought the Egyptian democratisation process to a halt.

The over indulgence in politics at the expense of economic and social issues, which he described as “prerequisites to democracy”, is also a major hindrance to having a full-fledged democracy in Egypt.

In an interview with The Jordan Times before the lecture, Hamzawy said he and other political figures who are not allied with the army or the Brotherhood now suffer from isolation as a result of the severe polarisation in Egypt.

“Choosing to distance ourselves from such polarisation, we are described now in both giants’ rhetoric as traitors, agents or a fifth column.”

Hamzawy joined the Department of Public Policy and Administration at the American University in Cairo in 2011, where he continues to work today. 

He also serves as an associate professor of political science at Cairo University’s department of political science. 

Hamzawy studied political science and developmental studies in Cairo, The Hague and Berlin. 

After finishing his doctoral studies and after five years of teaching in Cairo and Berlin, he joined the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington, DC, from 2005-2009 as a senior associate for Middle East politics. 

Between 2009 and 2010, he served as the research director of the Middle East Centre of the Carnegie Endowment in Beirut.

AMMAN — The Ministry of Labour detained more than 23,000 illegal guest workers and closed down 803 institutions in violation of the Labour Law last year, according to an official statement.

A report issued by the ministry on Wednesday said the number of illegal guest workers more than tripled last year, compared to 2012, when the figure stood at 7,558 migrant labourers, while no institutions were shut down that year.

Meanwhile, the ministry recorded 4,429 labour-related complaints in 2013, a 17 per cent drop compared to 2012, when 5,341 complaints were filed, Labour Minister Nidal Katamine said in a statement e-mailed to The Jordan Times.

“A total of 3,590 complaints were addressed last year, while 4,584 complaints were addressed in 2012,” Katamine added.

Following more than 70,000 inspection visits to institutions last year, the ministry issued 10,360 warnings and 19,809 tickets to violating institutions, according to the minister.

Noting that the ministry’s inspection campaign, implemented in cooperation with the Public Security Department, is still ongoing, Katamine called on guest workers and employers to abide by the Labour Law.

“Guest workers must obtain a work permit; otherwise workers found in violation of the Labour Law will be deported.”

He added that between 2011 and 2013, the ministry published on its website the names of 270,000 illegal guest workers whose work permits had expired.

Official figures indicate that there are around 265,000 guest labourers who have valid work permits and around 500,000 illegal workers.

Egyptians make up around 60 per cent of the guest labour force in Jordan, according to the ministry.   

AMMAN — Her Majesty Queen Rania on Wednesday joined the University of Jordan (UJ) to celebrate Arbour Day and support the university’s efforts to replace trees that were damaged during the recent snowstorm. 

Along with UJ President Ekhleif Tarawneh, vice presidents, deans, faculty members and students, Her Majesty planted several trees in one of the university’s gardens.  

Queen Rania then spoke with students taking part in an exhibition showcasing artwork made out of wood collected from cypress and pine trees that were damaged and broken during the last December’s blizzard. 

The exhibition was organised by the university in cooperation with the faculty of art and design along with other related faculties as part of an initiative entitled Al Saru Tribute, according to a statement from Her Majesty’s office.  

At the faculty of art and design, the Queen also had the chance to see sculptures made by students from the remains of tree trunks. 

Students explained that their artwork reflected memories and scenes from three of the four seasons: winter, summer and spring. Keram Nimri, dean of the faculty, was also present.

Her Majesty also met with students from different volunteer initiatives that were launched to help the university overcome the damages caused by the snowstorm.  

UJ initiated a fund last month to receive donations to make up for its losses during the snowstorm, estimated at JD7 million.
Infrastructure, electricity cables and sewage networks were damaged during the blizzard, as well as ancient trees in the university forest, according to Tarawneh.

AMMAN — Firearm prices in Jordan have soared tenfold since the war in neighbouring Syria erupted in 2011, but more people than ever are buying guns for protection against a possible spillover of the violence.

The number of licensed weapons stands at 120,000 but there are more than one million unlicensed guns in the Kingdom of seven million people, according to Interior Ministry estimates.

A study by the Jordanian Society for Political Sciences indicates that 25 per cent of Jordanians own guns, legally and illegally.

“The conflict in Syria makes people feel unsafe. They do not know what is coming in the future,” Sari Nasser, social sciences professor at the University of Jordan, told AFP.

“Jordanians buy guns to protect themselves because they think that security services are incapable of meeting their expectations.”

The war has taken a toll on the Kingdom, which is home to more than 500,000 Syrian refugees, most of them in the north, where frustrated Jordanians say they have become almost a minority.

Some have repeatedly complained that the refugees are burdening the country’s scarce resources and competing with them for jobs, while others say they fear the rise of Islamist power in Syria.

“Since violence started in Syria three years ago, demand for weapons has become very high,” Abu Samaan told AFP at his gun shop in downtown Amman.

“People are scared and they want to protect their lives and property,” said the 68-year-old, clad in an olive camouflage uniform.

The gun dealer, who has been in the business since the late 1960s, added that “customers are mainly looking for automatic weapons”.

Prices of some weapons have rocketed tenfold, with a Belgian-made M9 Browning pistol leaping from JD200 to more than JD1,800.

Similarly, the price of a Spanish-made Star M9 pistol went up from JD200 to JD2,000, and an Italian-made M7 Beretta pistol from JD120 to JD1,000.

“Very high demand, particularly for automatic weapons, which have become almost scarce in the market, has led to a sharp increase in prices of weapons in general,” said Abu Samaan.

With tidy profits to be made, smuggling has become big business, as has the illegal sale of weapons.

“There are 95 licensed gun shops in Jordan, but it is difficult to determine the number of other arms dealers, particularly with the current high level of smuggling,” a security source told AFP.

In the view of Rasmi Abdullah, a 47-year-old hunter, the Syrian conflict is the main factor driving Jordanians to buy weapons.

“The war has seriously affected people. Fearing violence will reach Jordan, they feel the need to buy guns for self defence,” said Abdullah as he visited Abu Samaan’s shop to stock up with ammunition — which he found had doubled in price.

Smuggled Turkish-made pump-action shotguns and tactical M7 pistols are favoured because of their relative cheapness, he said.

Shotguns, for example, go for JD600, while the price of an AK-47 automatic rifle has soared from JD200 two years ago to more than JD3,000 now.

Last month, the border guards said that arms smuggling has increased between Jordan and Syria by 300 per cent, adding that they have foiled hundreds of trafficking attempts, while the State Security Court is examining several related cases.

Concerned at the rapid weaponisation of the Kingdom, the government has banned the issuing of licences and the renewal of permits to carry firearms. It has also stopped giving permits for the opening of new gun shops.

But this has not stopped a thriving trade via Facebook, where thousands of people are trying to sell and buy weapons on a firearms classifieds site.

“The Syrian crisis has created new and different kinds of burdens, including arms trafficking,” Government Spokesperson Mohammad Momani told AFP.

“But Jordan’s armed forces are capable of controlling the situation and the government is closely monitoring any illegal activities.”

Police on Saturday said they had swooped in on an illegal weapons-making operation in the northern city of Irbid and had made several arrests.

The authorities have also jailed dozens of men convicted of trying to enter Syria to fight alongside rebel forces.

“There are hundreds or maybe thousands of Muslim extremists fighting in Syria. Most of them are Jordanians, so whether they win or lose, people here want to be ready,” said fearful citizen Abu Omar, as he examined handguns at a shop in Amman.

“At the same time, it is good business for dealers,” he added.

The shop owner agreed.

“In the past, Jordanians bought guns to show off. Now they are buying guns left and right for protection,” he said.

“The high prices will not stop people from buying weapons as long as the situation in Syria remains dangerous and unpredictable.”

AMMAN — Orange Jordan and Ericsson on Wednesday announced the launch of a JD15 million project to upgrade the telecom operator’s network, increase Internet speed and boost coverage across the Kingdom.

Under the project, the Swedish multinational technology company will install new equipment at Orange Jordan’s radio base stations, which will help reduce the company’s electricity bill by about 40 per cent, Orange Jordan CEO Jean-Francois Thomas said at a press conference.

The new project will save about JD1.5 million to JD2 million annually, which is crucial to address the rising electricity bill, especially after electricity prices increased in 2013, Thomas noted.

“After the government increased power prices, our electricity bill rose by about JD8 million annually,” he added.

The new equipment that will be installed to boost Orange Jordan’s network is Fourth Generation (4G)-ready, which means that it can be quickly adjusted to provide 4G services in the Kingdom when the company decides to introduce them, according to the CEO.

The project is expected to be completed by September, he said.

“The project will help in strengthening the quality of services, improve coverage, increase speed of data and significantly address the issue of latency in connecting to the Internet,” Thomas added.

Tarek Saadi, president of Ericsson’s north Middle East unit, said the installation of the new equipment will help enhance the network’s performance and boost its capabilities in handling larger volumes of data.

“The new [devices] will also help protect the environment as they consume less electricity and are likely to save about 50 per cent of power consumption,” Saadi added at the press conference.

As part of the agreement, Ericsson will upgrade Orange Jordan’s existing packet core and renew its radio access network by replacing the old radio base station. 

“The energy-efficient compact solution will allow Orange to develop new, high-speed mobile broadband services while reducing the deployment cost,” Saadi said.