School Year to Begin in Early September in Jordan, Fears of Another Virus Outbreak

A Jordanian child taking a PCR test in Ramtha city on August 17, 2020 (EPA)
A Jordanian child taking a PCR test in Ramtha city on August 17, 2020 (EPA)
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School Year to Begin in Early September in Jordan, Fears of Another Virus Outbreak

A Jordanian child taking a PCR test in Ramtha city on August 17, 2020 (EPA)
A Jordanian child taking a PCR test in Ramtha city on August 17, 2020 (EPA)

The school year is scheduled to being in early September in Jordan, amidst fears of a coronavirus outbreak among students.

Parents are concerned about their children’s return to schools, especially after recording a high number of local infections and the weakness of school infrastructure, mainly in the provinces and remote villages.

Many have also expressed grave concern about the students' non-compliance with public safety measures.

Minister of Education Tayseer al-Nuaimi affirmed that the school year will begin within certain arrangements that will soon be announced.

The ministry is reviewing a number of possibilities on the form of students’ return to schools in some areas, he added in televised statements.

Prime Minister Omar Razzaz, for his part, said there are several alternatives that depend on the seriousness of the situation in each area and the developments of the epidemiological situation.

He pointed out that some public and private schools will resume as usual while adhering to health requirements, while others will partially open, and schools located in isolated areas will rely on distance learning.

The Kingdom has seen a surge in the number of coronavirus infections after detecting a defect at the border crossings and the smuggling of infected people, as well as weak procedures taken by the staff there.

Health ministry statistics have revealed an unprecedented increase in the number of cases after recording about 120 infections during the past five days alone.

Authorities have isolated dozens of buildings and institutions in which people infected work or live and in light of official warnings of not knowing the sources of infection.

It has also imposed strict measures by forcing all facilities to shut down and imposing a curfew starting from 10 pm.

A new death from coronavirus was recorded on Sunday, bringing the total number of deaths to 12, while the number of infected people amounted to 1,576 since early March.

There are 291 cases that are receiving treatment in government hospitals, and the number of infections is increasing in major cities.



Palestinian Officials Say Israeli Settlers Torched Cars in Ramallah

Palestinians inspect their burnt vehicles at the site where Israeli settlers attacked in Al-Bireh near the West Bank city of Ramallah, 04 November 2024. (EPA)
Palestinians inspect their burnt vehicles at the site where Israeli settlers attacked in Al-Bireh near the West Bank city of Ramallah, 04 November 2024. (EPA)
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Palestinian Officials Say Israeli Settlers Torched Cars in Ramallah

Palestinians inspect their burnt vehicles at the site where Israeli settlers attacked in Al-Bireh near the West Bank city of Ramallah, 04 November 2024. (EPA)
Palestinians inspect their burnt vehicles at the site where Israeli settlers attacked in Al-Bireh near the West Bank city of Ramallah, 04 November 2024. (EPA)

Palestinian officials said Israeli settlers were behind an attack in which several cars were torched overnight just a few kilometers (miles) away from the Palestinian Authority’s headquarters in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

No one was wounded in the attack overnight into Monday in Al-Bireh, a city adjacent to Ramallah, where the Western-backed Palestinian Authority is headquartered. An Associated Press reporter counted 18 burned-out cars.

Settler attacks on Palestinians and their property have surged since the outbreak of the war in Gaza, which was triggered by Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 attack into Israel.

But attacks in and around Ramallah, home to senior Palestinian officials and international missions, are rare.

The Palestinian Authority, which administers population centers in the territory, condemned the attack. Israeli police, who handle law enforcement matters involving settlers in the West Bank, said they were investigating.

Israel captured the West Bank in the 1967 Mideast war, and the Palestinians want it to form the main part of their future state. The territory’s 3 million Palestinians live under seemingly open-ended Israeli military rule, with the Palestinian Authority exercising limited autonomy over less than half of the territory.

Over 500,000 Jewish settlers with Israeli citizenship live in scores of settlements across the West Bank, which most of the international community considers illegal.