Jordanian Business Delegation to Visit Syria to Strengthen Economic Ties - Jordan News
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Jordan Times
19 hours ago
- Jordan Times
Jordan welcomes France's planned recognition of Palestinian State
AMMAN/PARIS — Ministry of Foreign Affairs has welcomed French President Emmanuel Macron's announcement that France intends to formally recognise the State of Palestine during the upcoming United Nations General Assembly meetings in September. The ministry described the move as a 'positive step toward achieving a two-state solution and ending the occupation.' Foreign Ministry spokesperson Sufyan Qudah praised the French decision, calling it an important measure in countering efforts to deny the Palestinian people's legitimate right to self-determination and yo an independent and sovereign state of their own on their national soil. Qudah added in a statement that France's planned recognition aligns with ongoing international efforts to recognise a sovereign Palestinian state based on the June 4, 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital, in accordance with the two-state solution, relevant UN resolutions, and the Arab Peace Initiative. Macron said Thursday his country would formally recognise a Palestinian state during a UN meeting in September, the most powerful European nation to announce such a move. At least 142 countries now recognise or plan to recognise Palestinian statehood, according to an AFP tally -- though Israel and the United States strongly oppose the moves. Several countries have announced plans to recognise statehood for the Palestinians since Israel launched a bombardment of Gaza in 2023 in response to the October 7 attacks. Macron's announcement drew immediate anger from Israel, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying it "rewards terror" and poses an existential threat to Israel. Netanyahu said in a statement that the move "risks creating another Iranian proxy, just as Gaza became", which would be "a launch pad to annihilate Israel -- not to live in peace beside it". Senior Palestinian Authority official Hussein Al Sheikh welcomed the move, saying it "reflects France's commitment to international law and its support for the Palestinian people's rights to self-determination and the establishment of our independent state". 'Urgent priority' International concern is growing about the plight of the more than two million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, where the fighting has triggered a dire humanitarian crisis and warnings of mass starvation. Macron said the "urgent priority today is to end the war in Gaza and rescue the civilian population". "We must finally build the State of Palestine, ensure its viability and enable it, by accepting its demilitarisation and fully recognising Israel, to contribute to the security of all in the Middle East," he wrote on social media. On the streets of the occupied West Bank, Palestinians told AFP that they hoped other countries would now follow suit. Mahmoud Al Ifranji called France's pledge "a moral commitment" and a "political victory for the Palestinian people". "We are very grateful for this French position," added another man, Nahed Abu Taima, hoping it would lead to peace in Israel's war against Hamas militants in Gaza. "This recognition will lead to the recognition of Palestine by a number of countries in Europe and the world." 'Path' to statehood Macron said he intended to make the announcement at the UN General Assembly in September. While France would be the most significant European power to recognise a Palestinian state, others have hinted they could do the same. Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced he would hold a call with counterparts in Germany and France on efforts to stop the fighting on Friday, adding that a ceasefire would "put us on a path to the recognition of a Palestinian state". Norway, Spain, Ireland and Slovenia all announced recognition following the outbreak of the Gaza conflict, along with several other non-European countries. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, whose country already recognises Palestinian statehood, welcomed Macron's announcement. "Together, we must protect what Netanyahu is trying to destroy. The two-state solution is the only solution," the Socialist leader, an outspoken critic of Israel's offensive in Gaza, wrote on X. Israel's military campaign in Gaza has killed 59,587 Palestinians, mostly civilians, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory.
Jordan Times
19 hours ago
- Jordan Times
Jordan extends condolences to Russia after deadly plane crash
AMMAN — The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has extended its condolences to the government and people of Russia following a fatal passenger plane crash in the country's far east. The aircraft went down near the town of Tynda in the Amur Oblast region, claiming the lives of all those on board. In a statement on Thursday, the Foreign Ministry spokesperson Sufyan Qudah expressed the Kingdom's solidarity with Russia and conveyed heartfelt sympathy to the families of the victims. He also reiterated Jordan's full support for the Russian government and people in the wake of the tragedy. A passenger plane carrying nearly 50 people crashed in a remote area of Russia's far eastern Amur region on Thursday, killing all on board, authorities said. The plane, a Soviet-made twin-propeller Antonov-24, went down in remote, thickly forested terrain, leaving a column of smoke pouring from the crash site and no signs of survivors, according to state media and videos published by investigators.
Jordan Times
19 hours ago
- Jordan Times
Syrian, Israeli ministers to attend US-brokered meeting in Paris- senior diplomat
BEIRUT, Lebanon — Damascus's top diplomat Asaad al-Shaibani is set to meet an Israeli minister on Thursday in Paris to discuss recent sectarian violence in Syria's south that had drawn in Israel's military, a senior diplomat told AFP. The US-brokered talks would be the first ministerial meeting between the new Syrian authorities and Israel. The two countries have technically been at war since 1948, and Israel has occupied the Golan Heights from Syria in 1967. "There will be a Syrian-Israeli security meeting in Paris today, and Tom Barrack will facilitate it," the diplomat said, referring to the US special envoy for Syria. The diplomat said that Shaibani and Israel's Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer are expected to discuss "the topic of southern Syria", where deadly sectarian violence earlier this month prompted Israeli intervention. Dermer was already in Paris, according to an airport official. The senior diplomat, speaking to AFP on condition of anonymity, said that Shaibani was due to arrive in the city later on Thursday. Barrack, Washington's ambassador to Turkey, was also due to meet Paris's top diplomat Jean-Noel Barrot, according to a French foreign ministry source. Israel launched several air strikes on Syrian government positions in Sweida, a Druze-majority province in the country's south, saying it wanted to protect the minority community after sectarian clashes had erupted. The Israeli strikes also reached Damascus, hitting the area of the presidential palace and the army headquarters, in a bid to force government troops to leave Sweida city -- which eventually happened under a ceasefire announced by the authorities. Before the violence in Sweida, Syrian and Israeli officials had met in Baku on July 12, according to a diplomatic source in Damascus, coinciding with a visit to Azerbaijan by Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa. After the overthrow of longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in December, Israel carried out hundreds of air strikes in Syria to prevent key military assets falling into the hands of the new Islamist-led administration. Israel also sent troops into the UN-patrolled buffer zone that used to separate the opposing forces in the strategic Golan Heights, from which it has conducted forays deeper into southern Syria, demanding the area's demilitarisation.
