Jordan Doubles Power Supplies to West Bank City of Jericho

Electricity cables are seen in Tyre, Lebanon July 18, 2020. REUTERS/Aziz Taher/File Photo
Electricity cables are seen in Tyre, Lebanon July 18, 2020. REUTERS/Aziz Taher/File Photo
TT

Jordan Doubles Power Supplies to West Bank City of Jericho

Electricity cables are seen in Tyre, Lebanon July 18, 2020. REUTERS/Aziz Taher/File Photo
Electricity cables are seen in Tyre, Lebanon July 18, 2020. REUTERS/Aziz Taher/File Photo

Jordan said on Wednesday it had doubled the electricity supply sold to the occupied West Bank city of Jericho to 80 megawatts, helping reduce its reliance on power supplied by Israel.

They said the extra supplies came from a power station in the Jordan Valley linked to an existing Palestinian grid run by the Palestinian Authority, which runs parts of the West Bank, Reuters reported.

Jordan and the Palestinian Authority have sought to expand ties under interim peace accords signed with Israel in the 1990s but accuse Israel of placing impediments, charges Israel denies.

Jordan resumed supplying power to Jericho in the Jordan Valley nearly a decade ago.

The Palestinian Authority receives most of its electricity needs for the population under its control from Israel.

Jordan has sought to expand exports to Palestinian markets and has been negotiating with Israel to ease trade hurdles. It has accused Israel of trying to keep a tight grip on the market so it can sell Israeli goods. Israel denies the charges.



Türkiye Detains Hundreds after Anti-Syrian Riots

Shops are seen on fire in Kayseri in central Türkiye. Photo take from X from video footage
Shops are seen on fire in Kayseri in central Türkiye. Photo take from X from video footage
TT

Türkiye Detains Hundreds after Anti-Syrian Riots

Shops are seen on fire in Kayseri in central Türkiye. Photo take from X from video footage
Shops are seen on fire in Kayseri in central Türkiye. Photo take from X from video footage

Turkish authorities said Tuesday they had detained over 470 people after anti-Syrian riots in several cities sparked by accusations that a Syrian man had harassed a child.

Tensions escalated from Sunday following violence in a central Anatolian city after a mob went on the rampage, damaging businesses and properties belonging to the Syrians.

"474 people were detained after the provocative actions" carried out against Syrians in Türkiye, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said on X.

A group of men targeted Syrian businesses and properties in Kayseri on Sunday, with videos on social media showing a grocery store being set on fire.

In one of the videos a Turkish man was heard shouting: "We don't want any more Syrians! We don't want any more foreigners."

A court in Kayseri ordered the Syrian man's arrest late on Monday, Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc said, adding: "The child and her family are under our state's protection".

Officials said the child was a Syrian girl, who was related to the man accused of harassing her.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday blamed the opposition for stoking tensions and condemned the anti-Syrian violence as "unacceptable".

The unrest spread to several other cities late on Monday including Istanbul and authorities have often called for calm.

"Let's not get provoked, let's act moderately," Yerlikaya said in an appeal to Turkish citizens.

"Those who hatch these conspiracies against our state and nation will receive the response they deserve," he said.

Turkish police boosted security around the Syrian consulate in Istanbul on Tuesday, deploying an armored truck and patrolling the vicinity, according to an AFP journalist.