Category: General

Amman: During its meeting on Tuesday, the Senate’s Palestine Committee discussed the latest developments in the Palestinian territories.

The Committee’s Chairman, Nayef Qadi, said Jordan works with all its capabilities to prevent Israel’s attempts to displace Palestinians, which is a war crime, added to the occupation’s atrocities perpetrated against the Palestinian people in Gaza, West Bank and Jerusalem.

Qadi called on stopping Israel’s brutal aggression against the Gaza Strip and ending this humanitarian catastrophe with its unprecedented barbarism and its hideous consequences on the coastal enclave.

“Steps to deal with Gaza must be within an integrated plan based on the unity of Gaza with West Bank and Jerusalem and the recognition of an independent, sovereign Palestinian state on the June 4, 1967 lines with Jerusalem as its capital,” he pointed out.

Qadi added that this process must be carried out in accordance with the two-state solution, according to specific time frames and with real guarantees, a
nd in coordination with the Palestinian and Arab countries.

Lauding Jordan’s position as “advanced” in calling for halting aggression, he noted Jordan “fully” rejects any scenario or idea of reoccupying parts of Gaza or establishing buffer zones there.

Jordan also rejects any attempt to separate West Bank and Gaza, which constitutes an extension of the one Palestinian state, he said, adding that Amman confronts practices of extremist settlers’ violence against the Palestinian people and repeated violations of holy places in Jerusalem to prevent exacerbating the situation in the region.

Meanwhile, the committee praised the “active” role played by Jordan’s diplomacy under His Majesty King Abdullah II’s guidance, referring to its success in unifying Arab position and supporting just Palestinian demands.

The senators also said Jordan urged international community to urgently deliver humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, rejected displacement of Palestinians inside and outside the Strip, and continued to contact
concerned parties globally to discuss efforts to stop the war and protect civilians.

The committee recommended approval of a Jordanina decision to join the lawsuit submitted by South Africa to the International Court of Justice related to Israel’s war of genocide against the brotherly Palestinian people.

Additionally, the committtee called on the Palestinians to unite at this difficult stage in their history to confront this Israeli blatant aggression, achieve their goals, and establish their independent, sovereign state on their national territory, with Jerusalem as its capital.

Source: Jordan News Agency

Amman: The World Bank predicted that Jordan’s economy will rise by 2.6 percent in 2023, up from 0.2 percent, which it predicted in June.

The bank’s projections for the Jordanian economy’s growth rate this year were lower by 0.1 percent in its Global Economic Prospects report, which was released Tuesday. The economy is expected to rebound to a growth rate of 2.6 in 2025.

According to the Jordanian government’s projected budget for 2024, the local economy will grow by 2.6 percent this year.

Jordan’s GDP increased by 2.7 percent at constant market prices in the third quarter of this year compared to the same period last year, according to a report released by the Department of Statistics (DoS).

According to the bank’s report, global growth is likely to drop to 2.4 percent in 2024, reflecting the delayed and ongoing consequences of tight monetary policies aimed at reining in decades-long high inflation, restrictive credit conditions, and sluggish global trade and investment.

The report added that the future
prospects of emerging markets and developing economies, which have significant flaws, remain uncertain as debt and finance costs rise.

The bank noted that the latest Middle Eastern crisis, “the Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip,” which came on top of the Ukrainian war, intensified geopolitical risks.

According to the report, the escalation of the conflict could result in higher oil costs, with larger implications for global activity and inflation.

Other risks include financial pressures from increasing real interest rates, prolonged inflation, slower-than-expected growth in China, increased trade fragmentation, and climate-related calamities.

Regarding the bank’s Middle East projections, the report stated that the conflict has exacerbated uncertainties about the region’s growth prospects.

Assuming the conflict does not escalate, the Middle East and North Africa region’s growth rate is predicted to accelerate to 3.5 percent in 2024 and 2025.

The Gulf Cooperation Council countries’ growth rates ar
e predicted to rise to 3.6 percent in 2024 and 3.8 percent in 2025. In oil-importing countries, growth is predicted to accelerate to 3.2 percent this year and 3.7 percent by 2025.

According to the bank, the conflict will likely exacerbate inflation, restrict private sector activity, and increase pressure on foreign transaction accounts due to a drop in tourism revenues and remittances from Egyptians abroad, just as it will have a negative impact on Jordan’s tourism sector.

Source: Jordan News Agency

The following statement was issued on Tuesday by the Islamic Resistance in Lebanon:

‘In support of our steadfast Palestinian people in Gaza, and as a reinforcement to their courageous and honorable resistance, the fighters of the Islamic Resistance targeted the Al-Malkieh site at 9:30 am on Tuesday, January 9, 2024, using appropriate weapons, resulting in a direct hit.’

Source: National News Agency – Lebanon

RAMALLAH: A Palestinian man in his early 30s was killed this afternoon after being shot by Israeli occupation forces near the military checkpoint of Ein Sinya to the north of Ramallah, according to the Ministry of Health.

The young man, who was identified as 31-year-old Ibrahim Samih Jayousi, was shot dead by the occupation forces near the said checkpoint north of Ramallah.

Local sources said that forces opened fire at a man near the Ain Sinya checkpoint after he allegedly attempted to carry out a stabbing attack. The occupation forces closed the checkpoint in the aftermath of the shooting and prevented Palestinians from crossing.

This route is considered one of the few available routes that Palestinians have been using to enable them to enter or exit the city of Ramallah due to the intensified erection of checkpoints, roadblocks, ongoing closures to cities and villages, and the threat of settler attacks since October 7, which all have resulted in severe restrictions on movement and left Palestinians force
d to use longer alternative roads to reach their destination.

Source: Palestine news and Information Agency – WAFA

Amman: The Anti-Narcotics Department (AND) conducted a coordinated security operation in the Central Badia, targeting wanted individuals and repeat offenders involved in drug trafficking, the Public Security Directorate (PSD) spokesperson reported on Tuesday.

The operation resulted in the apprehension of five individuals, including a highly classified dangerous person found in possession of 27,000 narcotic pills and 90 palm-sized packs of hashish. Additionally, a drug dealer was arrested with 10 packs of hashish and two firearms.

The PSD spokesperson further disclosed that anti-drug units addressed specific cases across the Kingdom. In Amman, a drug dealer was arrested with 39,000 narcotic pills in his possession. Another case in Ma’an led to the seizure of 33,000 narcotic pills from a drug trafficker.

In Mafraq, the authorities dealt with two cases involving promoters. The first case resulted in the arrest of a promoter with 13 packs of hashish, while the second involved the apprehension of another promot
er with 8 packs of hashish. Simultaneously, in a Southern Shouna area, a thwarted attempt by a repeat drug offender to plant marijuana seedlings led to his arrest, and the seedlings were confiscated.

Source: Jordan News Agency