Day: August 26, 2021

Jordan continues to bake in a heatwave on Thursday, triggering a significant increase in mercury levels to reach higher than annual average by 4 to 6 degrees Celsius, reaching 38C in Amman, the Jordan Meteorological Department (JMD) said in its daily brief.

Cooler weather is forecast at night as temperatures slide to around 25 degrees in the Capital, the department added, indicating that winds will be northeasterly to northwesterly, blowing dust at times.

The southernmost Red Sea port of Aqaba and the Jordan Valley will continue to reel under sweltering weather with temperature breaking into the 42-43C vicinity.

The weather department warned the public of direct exposure to sunlight, mainly at noon.

Over the weekend, similar scorching weather will continue to persist countrywide, with clouds at various altitudes, the JMD added, noting that light and spotty showers are also forecast on Friday in the southern and eastern parts of the Kingdom.

Source: Jordan News Agency

The Jordan Tourism Board (JTB) on Thursday signed a charter flight agreement with a Czech travel agency to attract tourist groups to the Kingdom from the eastern European nation as early as October.

The agreement entails JTB’s support for charter fights operated by the Czech Golden Travel and Tours company, according to a JTB statement.

JTB Director-General Abdul Razzaq Arabiyat said the board had been working to attract charter flights after a government decision exempted passengers departing from the King Hussein International Airport in Aqaba from departure. The decision included charter, regular and low-cast flights.

The Czech’s company Managing Partner, Jana Novotna, said her company was keen to resume tourism collaboration with Jordan, which came to a halt after the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic.

Source: Jordan News Agency

Seven countries in the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Region have enrolled to participate in the Solidarity PLUS clinical trial led by WHO. Solidarity PLUS will evaluate 3 potential drugs for the treatment of COVID-19 infections – artesunate, imatinib and infliximab – aiming to protect people from severe hospitalization and death because of COVID-19.

A statement by the WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean on Thursday said that these drugs were selected by an independent panel of experts who assess all available evidence on all relevant therapeutics. The drugs have proven effectiveness in treating other life-threatening diseases. Artesunate is used for severe malaria, imatinib for specific cancers, and infliximab for diseases of the immune system, such as Crohn’s disease and rheumatoid arthritis.

Researchers and scientists from Egypt, Islamic Republic of Iran, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia are joining thousands of researchers in 52 countries worldwide in the study, making up the largest global collaboration on COVID-19 research and development.

“COVID-19 has been the most disruptive public health challenge in the past century. In less than 2 years, the pandemic has claimed over 4.4 million lives across the world, overwhelmed health systems, and disrupted economies and societies. It is critical that we find effective treatments to prevent severe hospitalization and death caused by COVID-19. We appreciate the efforts of countries in the Region in collaborating on vital global studies for the treatment of COVID-19, in the spirit of solidarity,” said Dr Ahmed Al-Mandhari, WHO Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean. “And as we continue in our efforts to combat this pandemic, we must also continue to adhere to the current proven protection measures: getting vaccinated, maintaining physical distancing, washing hands, avoiding crowded and closed spaces, and wearing a mask.”

The Solidarity PLUS trial is a platform trial that represents the largest global collaboration among WHO’s Member States. It involves thousands of researchers in over 600 hospitals in 52 countries: 16 more countries than in the first phase of trials. This allows the trial to assess multiple treatments at the same time using a single protocol, recruiting thousands of patients to generate robust estimates on the effect a drug may have on mortality, even moderate effects.

The Solidarity PLUS trial also allows new treatments to be added and ineffective treatments to be dropped throughout its course. Previously, 4 drugs were evaluated by the trial. The results showed that remdesivir, hydroxychloroquine, lopinavir and interferon had little or no effect on hospitalized patients with COVID-19.

Source: Jordan News Agency

A Jordanian who had gone missing while vacationing in Turkey was found in good health, said Daifallah Fayez, Spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates on Thursday.

Earlier this month, Husam Khasawneh had suffered a head injury that caused temporary memory loss and disorientation, due to which he left his hotel room without notifying anyone.

The Jordanian embassy in Ankara, Fayez noted, had followed up with local authorities on the case and notified the ministry that Khasawneh is currently in an Istanbul hospital.

A team from the embassy visited Khasawneh in the hospital to check on his health, and informed his brother, who is in Turkey. The embassy is now working to finalize all the necessary arrangements to secure his return to the Kingdom as soon as possible.

Source: Jordan News Agency

Head of the Jordanian-European Parliamentary Friendship Association, MP Khaldoun Hina, said His Majesty King Abdullah II’s visit to Russia came at an “important” time and reflected Jordan’s influential position at the international arena.

Hina, speaking at a meeting Thursday with Russian Ambassador to Jordan, Gleb Desyatnikov, lauded the “remarkable” efforts made by His Majesty at his talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin to enhance bilateral cooperation and economic opportunities and highlight Jordan’s role in promoting peace and stability in the region.

Hina and the association’s members valued Russia’s positions in support of the Palestinian cause and the peace process, as well as the Hashemite custodianship over Islamic and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem’s Al-Quds Al-Sharif.

The deputies also said His Majesty’s visit to Russia confirms the King’s “unrelenting” keenness on the region’s security and stability in light of the turbulent conditions at the regional level, stressing their support for a political solution that guarantees Syria’s unity and territorial integrity.

All parties are called on to work to create a “safe and stable” atmosphere in Syria, the lawmakers said, pointing to Moscow’s role in this framework, which benefits Jordan and Syria in many economic, commercial, agricultural, cultural and tourism fields, as well as the energy and water areas.

Desyatnikov, for his part, praised the level of Jordanian-Russian relations, lauding them as “solid and could be built on many fields and at various levels”.

Lauding His Majesty’s talks with President Putin as “distinguished and fruitful,” the envoy said his country supports all cooperation aspects with Jordan in the economic, commercial, industrial, cultural and tourism fields, as well as energy, water and electricity domains.

Russia, he said, is working to strengthen cooperation horizons with Jordan through agreed upon bilateral committees.

Russia, he noted, views as “important” the Hashemite custodianship over Islamic and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem and also supports appropriate solutions that would provide a peace agreement on the Palestinian cause within the international legitimacy resolutions.

Russia appreciates all Jordanian positions calling for strengthening security and stability in Syria and the region, he noted, commending as “distinguished” the Jordanian role in this regard.

Source: Jordan News Agency

Director-General of the Land Transport Regulatory Commission (LTRC), Tariq Habashneh, on Thursday discussed with a delegation from Iraq’s General Company for Land Transportation (GCLT), ways to enhance joint cooperation and the challenges facing the freight transport between the two brotherly countries.

The LTRC, in a press statement, said Habashneh affirmed the Kingdom’s continuous keenness to strengthen cooperation frameworks between Jordan and Iraq to serve the transport sector and enhance joint trade flow.

To expand trade exchange, Habashneh stressed the need to take all necessary measures to facilitate smooth movement of goods between the two countries, and increase volume of commodity and export flow.

The GCLT delegation, for their part, said Iraq’s government is “fully” prepared to provide all facilitations to ensure sustained goods movement between the two countries.

Source: Jordan News Agency