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Jordan Completes Renovation of Longest Roman Water Tunnel

A Jordanian leads a caravan of camels in Jordan's ancient city of Petra AFP
A Jordanian leads a caravan of camels in Jordan's ancient city of Petra AFP
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Jordan Completes Renovation of Longest Roman Water Tunnel

A Jordanian leads a caravan of camels in Jordan's ancient city of Petra AFP
A Jordanian leads a caravan of camels in Jordan's ancient city of Petra AFP

The US Embassy in Amman announced the completion of the project to renovate and conserve the Roman tunnel in the Umm Qais northern Jordan, with a $160,000 fund from the US Ambassadors Fund for Cultural Preservation (AFCP).

Through its partnership with the Faculty of Archeology and Anthropology at Yarmouk University, the US Embassy has managed to restore the valuable historic site so that Jordanians, visitors, and tourists can enjoy its beautiful ancient architecture. The Yarmouk University, in cooperation with the US Embassy, ​​hosted a ceremony to announce the official opening of the site.

The Roman tunnel in Umm Qais is the longest Roman aqueduct known in the world, extending to 170 km from Jordan to Syria, which is nine times longer than the second longest water tunnel in Italy.

The AFCP grant had been allocated between 2015 and 2018. It enabled the Department of Conservation and Management of Heritage Resources at Yarmouk University to rehabilitate and promote the tunnel to host visitors and boost tourism in the site. The Ambassadors Fund for the Preservation of Cultural Heritage supports the protection of sites and cultural features around the world. Since 2001, Jordan has received more than $2 million grants to finance 18 projects to preserve cultural heritage in places such as Petra, Al-Baydha, Umm Al-Jimal, Abila, the Jordan Valley and the heart of the country.

US Chargé d’Affaires Jim Barnhart said the United States is proud to stand as a partner in preserving and protecting Jordan’s heritage sites, noting that tourism remains one of the foundations of Jordan’s economy. In 2016, the Faculty of Archeology and Anthropology at Yarmouk University launched the project aiming to maintain and renovate the water tunnel at the site of Umm Qais, northern Jordan, and one of the ten commercial cities of the Decapolis. Dr. Ziad Al Saad, the university's vice president for academic affairs, explained that this tunnel is the tallest of its kind in the ancient world.

It is a network of underground 170 km long tunnels, which was inaugurated by the Roman engineers in 90 AD to transport drinking water from an ancient lake in Syria to Umm Qais in northern Jordan. The AFCP project was dedicated to preserve and rehabilitate 2-3 kilometers of the tunnel located below the archaeological site on Umm Qais hill.

Saad explained that the importance of the project is emphasized in preserving and maintaining the cultural value of this water engineering system. It contributes to enhancing the cultural and historical identity of Umm Qais, and boosting the role of tourism and archeology in achieving sustainable development of the community.

He added that the project's executive procedures included the architectural documentation of the tunnel through modern techniques such as photogrammetry, 3D laser survey and the geographic information system (GIS), as well as the documentation of the damages in caused by environmental factors and the previous maintenance procedures using cement at the entrance to the tunnel.

The second phase of the project saw the maintenance and restoration works with minimal intervention in accordance with international standards for the restoration of historic sites.

These procedures had been accompanied by the renovation of infrastructure and mechanics that enable people to move in the tunnel, in order to offer a unique experience that takes visitors to the past and introduce them to the creativity of those who built this tunnel.

Saad stressed that the completion of this project will provide the required conditions to qualify Umm Qais tunnel to be added on the World Heritage List, which will give the site an added value and enhanced protection.

It will also pave the road for the implementation of future works to maintain the remaining parts of the tunnel. This responsibility requires more cooperation and coordination between the concerned local, regional and global institutions. Saad noted that the project remains subject to stability in the area of ​​the historic triangle in the north.

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Varieties

Mohammad Bakri, Renowned and Controversial Palestinian Actor and Filmmaker, Dies at 72

Palestinian actor Mohammed Bakri poses during the photocall for the film “Wajib” at the 70th Locarno International Film Festival in Locarno, Switzerland, on Aug. 5, 2017. (Urs Flueeler/Keystone via AP, File)
Palestinian actor Mohammed Bakri poses during the photocall for the film “Wajib” at the 70th Locarno International Film Festival in Locarno, Switzerland, on Aug. 5, 2017. (Urs Flueeler/Keystone via AP, File)
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Mohammad Bakri, Renowned and Controversial Palestinian Actor and Filmmaker, Dies at 72

Palestinian actor Mohammed Bakri poses during the photocall for the film “Wajib” at the 70th Locarno International Film Festival in Locarno, Switzerland, on Aug. 5, 2017. (Urs Flueeler/Keystone via AP, File)
Palestinian actor Mohammed Bakri poses during the photocall for the film “Wajib” at the 70th Locarno International Film Festival in Locarno, Switzerland, on Aug. 5, 2017. (Urs Flueeler/Keystone via AP, File)

Mohammad Bakri, a Palestinian director and actor who sought to share the complexities of Palestinian identity and culture through a variety of works in both Arabic and Hebrew, has died, his family announced. He was 72.

Bakri was best known for “Jenin, Jenin,” a 2003 documentary he directed about an Israeli military operation in the northern West Bank city the previous year during the second Palestinian intifada, or uprising. The film, focusing on the heavy destruction and heartbreak of its Palestinian residents, was banned by Israel, The AP news reported.

Bakri also acted in the 2025 film “ All That’s Left of You,” a drama about a Palestinian family through more than 76 years, alongside his sons, Adam and Saleh Bakri, who are also actors. The film has been shortlisted by the Academy Awards for the best international feature film.

Over the years, he made several films that spanned the spectrum of Palestinian experiences. He also acted in Hebrew, including at Israel’s national theater in Tel Aviv, and appeared in a number of famous Israeli films in the 1980s and 1990s. He studied at Tel Aviv University.

Bakri, who was born in northern Israel and held Israeli citizenship, dabbled in both film and theater. His best-known one-man-show from 1986, “The Pessoptimist,” based on the writings of Palestinian author Emile Habiby, focused on the intricacies and emotions of someone who has both Israeli and Palestinian identities.

During the 1980s, Bakri played characters in mainstream Israeli films that humanized the Palestinian identity, including “Beyond the Walls,” a seminal film about incarcerated Israelis and Palestinians, said Raya Morag, a professor at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem who specializes in cinema and trauma.

“He broke stereotypes about how Israelis looked at Palestinians, and allowing someone Palestinian to be regarded as a hero in Israeli society,” she said.

“He was a very brave person, and he was brave by standing to his ideals, choosing not to be conformist in any way, and paying the price in both societies,” said Morag.

Bakri faced some pushback within Palestinian society for his cooperation with Israelis. After “Jenin, Jenin,” he was plagued by almost two decades of court cases in Israel, where the film was seen as unbalanced and inciting.

In 2022, Israel's Supreme Court upheld a ban on the documentary, saying it defamed Israeli soldiers, and ordered Bakri to pay tens of thousands of dollars in damages to an Israeli military officer for defamation.

“Jenin, Jenin” was a turning point in Bakri’s career. In Israel, he became a polarizing figure and he never worked with mainstream Israeli cinema again, Morag said. “He was loyal to himself despite all the pressures from inside and outside,” she added. “He was a firm voice that did not change during the years.”

Local media quoted Bakri's family as saying he died Wednesday after suffering from heart and lung problems. His cousin, Rafic, told the Arabic news site Al-Jarmaq that Bakri was a tenacious advocate of the Palestinians who used his works to express support for his people.

“I am certain that Abu Saleh will remain in the memory of Palestinian people everywhere and all people of the free world,” he said, using Mohammed Bakri's nickname.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Varieties

Over 60 Endangered Species Released into King Khalid Royal Reserve

These efforts align with the National Environment Strategy and Saudi Vision 2030 - SPA
These efforts align with the National Environment Strategy and Saudi Vision 2030 - SPA
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Over 60 Endangered Species Released into King Khalid Royal Reserve

These efforts align with the National Environment Strategy and Saudi Vision 2030 - SPA
These efforts align with the National Environment Strategy and Saudi Vision 2030 - SPA

In collaboration with the National Center for Wildlife (NCW), the Imam Abdulaziz bin Mohammed Royal Reserve Development Authority has released over 60 endangered species into the King Khalid Royal Reserve. This initiative supports a national program to reintroduce wildlife into their natural habitats.

CEO of the authority Dr. Talal Al-Harigi stated that the release aims to enhance biodiversity and restore natural habitats. He emphasized that the project fosters a stable environment for wildlife adaptation, SPA reported.

These efforts align with the National Environment Strategy and Saudi Vision 2030, which seek to improve the quality of life and promote sustainability. Dr. Al-Harigi noted that the partnership with NCW exemplifies institutional integration and the use of global best practices for successful reintroduction.

The release included species such as Arabian sand gazelles, Arabian oryx, wild hares, and mountain gazelles, contributing to biodiversity, ecological balance, and eco-tourism in the region.

Varieties

'The Best Gift Ever': Baby is Born after the Rarest of Pregnancies, Defying All Odds

This photo provided by the family shows Ryu Lopez in California in October 2025. (Lopez family via AP)
This photo provided by the family shows Ryu Lopez in California in October 2025. (Lopez family via AP)
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'The Best Gift Ever': Baby is Born after the Rarest of Pregnancies, Defying All Odds

This photo provided by the family shows Ryu Lopez in California in October 2025. (Lopez family via AP)
This photo provided by the family shows Ryu Lopez in California in October 2025. (Lopez family via AP)

Suze Lopez holds her baby boy on her lap and marvels at the remarkable way he came into the world.

Before little Ryu was born, he developed outside his mom’s womb, hidden by a basketball-sized ovarian cyst — a dangerous situation so rare that his doctors plan to write about the case for a medical journal, The AP news reported.

Just 1 in 30,000 pregnancies occur in the abdomen instead of the uterus, and those that make it to full term “are essentially unheard of — far, far less than 1 in a million,” said Dr. John Ozimek, medical director of labor and delivery at Cedars-Sinai in Los Angeles, where Ryu was born. “I mean, this is really insane.”

Lopez, a 41-year-old nurse who lives in Bakersfield, California, didn’t know she was pregnant with her second child until days before giving birth.

When her belly began to grow earlier this year, she thought it was her ovarian cyst getting bigger. Doctors had been monitoring the mass since her 20s, leaving it in place after removing her right ovary and another cyst.

Lopez experienced none of the usual pregnancy symptoms, such as morning sickness, and never felt kicks. Though she didn’t have a period, her cycle is irregular and she sometimes goes years without one.

For months, she and her husband, Andrew Lopez, went about their lives and traveled abroad.

But gradually, the pain and pressure in her abdomen got worse, and Lopez figured it was finally time to get the 22-pound (10-kilogram) cyst removed. She needed a CT scan, which required a pregnancy test first because of the radiation exposure. To her great surprise, the test came back positive.

Lopez shared the news with her husband at a Dodgers baseball game in August, handing him a package with a note and a onesie.

“I just saw her face,” he recalled, “and she just looked like she wanted to weep and smile and cry at the same time.”

Shortly after the game, Lopez began feeling unwell and sought help at Cedars-Sinai. It turned out she had dangerously high blood pressure, which the medical team stabilized. They also did blood work and gave her an ultrasound and an MRI. The scans found that her uterus was empty, but a nearly full-term fetus in an amniotic sac was hiding in a small space in her abdomen, near her liver.

“It did not look like it was directly invading any organs,” Ozimek said. “It looked like it was mostly implanted on the sidewall of the pelvis, which is also very dangerous but more manageable than being implanted in the liver.”

Dr. Cara Heuser, a maternal-fetal specialist in Utah not involved with the case, said almost all pregnancies that implant outside the uterus — called ectopic pregnancies — go on to rupture and hemorrhage if not removed. Most commonly, they occur in the fallopian tubes.

A 2023 medical journal article by doctors in Ethiopia described another abdominal pregnancy in which the mother and baby survived, pointing out that fetal mortality can be as high as 90% in such cases and birth defects are seen in about 1 in 5 surviving babies.

But Lopez and her son beat all the odds.

On Aug. 18, a medical team delivered the 8-pound (3.6-kilogram) baby while she was under full anesthesia, removing the cyst during the same surgery. She lost nearly all of her blood, Ozimek said, but the team got the bleeding under control and gave her transfusions.

Doctors continually updated her husband about what was happening.

“The whole time, I might have seemed calm on the outside, but I was doing nothing but praying on the inside,” Andrew Lopez said. “It was just something that scared me half to death, knowing that at any point I could lose my wife or my child.”

Instead, they both recovered well.

“It was really, really remarkable,” Ozimek said.

Since then, Ryu — named after a baseball player and a character in the Street Fighter video game series — has been healthy and thriving. His parents love watching him interact with his 18-year-old sister, Kaila, and say he completes their family.

With Ryu’s first Christmas approaching, Lopez describes feeling blessed beyond measure.

“I do believe in miracles,” she said, looking down at her baby. “God gave us this gift — the best gift ever.”