Jordan’s crown prince meets Turkish president in Ankara, discusses regional issues

AQABA: Queen Rania of Jordan visited Al-Quwayrah District in Aqaba on Tuesday, where she met with female entrepreneurs and community leaders benefiting from income-generating projects supported by the Jordan River Foundation.

During a meeting at Al-Quwayrah Youth Center, the queen engaged with beneficiaries of civil society organizations that receive grants from the Royal Hashemite Court, Jordan News Agency reported.

These projects, implemented in partnership with the Aqaba Governorate Council and JRF, have created sustainable incomes for over 100 families in the region by supporting small-scale ventures in agriculture, services, and handicrafts.

Commending the initiative, Queen Rania praised the entrepreneurs for their dedication to building businesses that provide new income streams and contribute to community development. She highlighted the crucial role of youth and women-led enterprises in fostering economic growth at the grassroots level.

The queen was welcomed at Al-Quwayrah Youth Center by its director, Ali Njadat, along with Ahmad Ghnaimat, director of the Queen Rania Al-Abdullah Community Empowerment Center in Aqaba; Fadia Al-Amamreh, president of the Golden Triangle Charitable Society; and Hadwa Njadat, president of the Nashmyiat Al-Quwayrah Society for the Welfare of Orphans.

As part of her visit, the queen toured two small businesses supported by community empowerment programs. She visited the home of Harba Al-Rkeibat, also known as Um Enad, who operates a home-based breadmaking business alongside a carpet cleaning venture. The queen also stopped by a print shop owned by Ali Manaj’aa, which has provided employment opportunities for local youth.

Queen Rania also visited the Children’s Mobile Museum, currently stationed at the youth center. Launched in 2012, the initiative brings interactive learning experiences to children across Jordan who may not have access to the main Children’s Museum in Amman.

In 2024 alone, the mobile museum welcomed nearly 45,000 visitors, including school groups, families, and charitable organizations.

UNITED NATIONS: The Middle East is undergoing changes that could represent the last chance for the long-sought goal of a two-state solution to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, a UN official said Tuesday.
Sigrid Kaag, the UN envoy for the peace process in the region, also warned against calls for Israel to annex the occupied West Bank.
“The Middle East today is undergoing rapid transformation — its scope and impact remain uncertain, but it also presents a historic opportunity,” Kaag told the UN Security Council.
“The people of the region can emerge from this period with peace, security, and dignity. However, this may be our last chance to achieve the two-state solution,” said Kaag.
She said Israeli settlement building in the West Bank, Israeli military operations in this occupied territory “and continued calls for annexation, present an existential threat to the prospect of a viable and independent Palestinian State and thereby the two-state solution.”
Kaag called on Hamas and Israel to agree on the second phase of the ceasefire in the Gaza war and avoid a resumption of fighting.
The international community must ensure that Gaza — which President Donald Trump wants to put under US control, displacing its entire population — must be part of a future Palestinian state joining it with the West Bank and east Jerusalem, she said.
“Palestinian civilians must be able to resume their lives, to rebuild, and to construct their future in Gaza,” said Kaag.