Archive: jordan

11th July 2010
By: Brian Whitaker
A 28-year-old woman was stabbed to death in a suburb of Amman yesterday – the eighth reported "honour" killing in Jordan so far this year. She is said to have been stabbed 16 times and her four brothers are being questioned by police, according to the Jordan Times. The paper quotes a source as… Read more
7th July 2010
By: Brian Whitaker
Four men were convicted yesterday in a multi-million-dollar bribery case involving expansion plans for Jordan's only oil refinery. Those convicted are: Adel Qudah, a former finance minister and former chairman of the Jordan Petroleum Refinery Company (JPRC) Ahmad Rifai… Read more
22nd April 2010
By: Brian Whitaker
Education specialists in Jordan "have become increasingly outspoken" about continuing problems with school textbooks, according to The National.  In 2003, recognising that the existing curriculum was inadequate for the needs of a modern society, Jordan launched an initiative "to strengthen and… Read more
14th March 2010
By: Brian Whitaker
Four high-ranking Jordanians are imprisoned and awaiting trail in what looks like becoming the kingdom’s biggest-ever corruption case. Bribes of JD12 million ($17 million) are alleged to be involved, in connection with expansion plans for Jordan's only oil refinery. Those arrested are:  Read more
17th February 2010
By: Brian Whitaker
I didn't spot this when it happened last month, but it has important implications for freedom of expression. The Jordanian Court of Cassation ruled that websites can be classified as "publications" and are therefore subject to penalties under the kingdom's Press and Publications Law for anything… Read more
4th January 2010
By: Brian Whitaker
The Jordan Times reports on the case of Ishara Hemanthi, a 23-year-old Sri Lankan domestic worker in Amman: "They would whip me with a phone cord or a water nozzle, and sometimes would pull my hair if I did not finish the tasks they had set for me during the day," she said, adding that she wanted… Read more
19th October 2009
By: Brian Whitaker
A 22-year-old Jordanian woman with stomach pains was taken to the doctor by her father and an uncle on Saturday. The doctor found she was pregnant. “On their way home, the father stabbed the girl with a sword 25 times in her stomach, killing her immediately as well as her unborn baby boy,” a police… Read more
13th October 2009
By: Brian Whitaker
A Jordanian man has been sentenced to 15 years in jail with hard labour for killing his sister “to cleanse his family's honour”. By Jordanian standards, the sentence is unusually tough – sentences in some previous cases have been as little as a few months. According to a court official quoted in… Read more
30th September 2009
By: Brian Whitaker
Three Jordanian brothers have been accused of murdering their 40-year-old sister because of her “bad reputation”, the Jordan Timesreports. The men killed the divorced mother of five after finding photos of her sitting with her alleged lover, police said. They stabbed her 15 times then set fire to… Read more
16th September 2009
By: Brian Whitaker
A Jordanian doctor could face legal action after reportedly abandoning his Indonesian maid near Directorate of Chest Diseases and Foreigners' Health after she developed tuberculosis. The 28-year-old woman was allegedly beaten by the doctor’s mother and received no wages during the 19 months that… Read more