Jordan Gradually Begins Reopening Economy

A man shops at a market in Amman, Jordan. (Reuters)
A man shops at a market in Amman, Jordan. (Reuters)
TT

Jordan Gradually Begins Reopening Economy

A man shops at a market in Amman, Jordan. (Reuters)
A man shops at a market in Amman, Jordan. (Reuters)

Jordan’s government order to reopen economic sectors “gradually and safely” came into effect on Tuesday and will be applied within a three-month period as it attempts to return to normal following the coronavirus pandemic.

Sports centers and academies, fitness centers, sports clubs, indoor swimming pools in hotels and residential and tourist complexes, public swimming pools, equestrian clubs, academies and vocational and technical training centers resumed operation and were allowed to open in accordance within specified working hours.

Also, Turkish and oriental baths, billiards and snooker centers, arcade games centers, amusement parks and indoor children’s playing areas reopened their doors on Tuesday.

The decision further included cinemas, educational and cultural centers and health clubs. It allowed the serving of hookahs outdoors at squares, restaurants, cafes and hotel facilities.

Starting mid-June, people who received the first shot of the COVID-19 vaccine will be able to move and roam the kingdom’s cities during curfew hours.

Under the decision, people wishing to visit the opened facilities will have to present their ID card, health verification code or vaccination certificate through the “Sanad” mobile app. Violators may face a fine of up to 50 dinars.

Jordan has confirmed 737,284 infections and 9,472 deaths since the beginning of the pandemic.



UN Rights Chief ‘Gravely Concerned’ by Lebanon Escalation

Smoke billows above Beirut’s southern suburbs following an Israeli airstrike on November 26, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)
Smoke billows above Beirut’s southern suburbs following an Israeli airstrike on November 26, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)
TT

UN Rights Chief ‘Gravely Concerned’ by Lebanon Escalation

Smoke billows above Beirut’s southern suburbs following an Israeli airstrike on November 26, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)
Smoke billows above Beirut’s southern suburbs following an Israeli airstrike on November 26, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)

The UN rights chief on Tuesday voiced concern about the escalation of hostilities in Lebanon, where his office said nearly 100 people had been reported killed by Israeli airstrikes in recent days, including women, children and medics.

Israel has been locked in fighting with Lebanese armed group Hezbollah since Oct. 2023, and fighting has escalated dramatically since late September of this year.

"UN Human Rights Chief Volker Turk is gravely concerned by the escalation in Lebanon with at least 97 people reportedly killed in Israeli airstrikes between the 22nd and 24th of November," Jeremy Laurence, a spokesperson for the Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights, told a Geneva press briefing.

He said that at least seven paramedics had been reported killed in three Israeli strikes in the south of Lebanon on Nov. 22-23, adding to 226 healthcare worker deaths since Oct. 7, 2023. He did not specify how many of the recent deaths had been verified by UN human rights monitors.

Israel says it targets military capabilities in Lebanon and Gaza and takes steps to mitigate the risk of harm to civilians. It accuses Hezbollah, like Hamas, of hiding among civilians, which they deny.