On the evening of July 18, 2013, Her Majesty Queen Rania of Jordan hosted an “…Iftar banquet at the royal court for representatives and volunteers of civil society organizations in recognition of their efforts and work…” according to Petra News.
Meanwhile, His Majesty King Abdullah II and His Royal Highness Crown Prince Hussein bin Abdullah II of Jordan hosted their own Iftar banquet for “…senior officials and officers as well as clerics and members of diplomatic missions in the Kingdom.”
On July 17, 2013, His Majesty King Abdullah II of Jordan held an audience with Foreign Minister of Qatar, Mr. Khalid bin Mohammad Al Attiyah, at Al Hummar Palace in Amman.
Discussions focused on the latest developments in the region, specifically the Syrian crisis, and ways to forge closer ties between Jordan and Qatar.
His Majesty also held talks with the Secretary-General of the League of Arab States, Mr. Nabil Elaraby. Discussions focused on the never-ending Syrian crisis as well as ways to achieve peace in the Middle East. According to Petra News, His Majesty and Mr. Elaraby also discussed the :
“…efforts led by the United States Secretary of State, Mr. John Kerry, to bring the Palestinians and the Israelis closer to revive the peace process and address all final status issues.”
On Wednesday, July 17, 2013, His Majesty King Abdullah II of Jordan attended the launch of the Disi Water Conveyance Project, which is designed to “…pump 100,000,000 cubic meters of water per year from the Disi Aquifer in southern Jordan to the governorates of Mafraq, Zarqa, Irbid and Amman…” according to various sources.
His Majesty, accompanied by His Royal Highness Crown Prince Hussein bin Abdullah II of Jordan, also met with United States Secretary of State, Mr. John Kerry — again — this afternoon at Al Hummar Palace in Amman. The purpose of their meeting was to discuss the latest updates on the “…Middle East peace talks between Palestinians and Israelis…” as well as the latest developments in Syria and Egypt.
Meanwhile, Her Majesty Queen Rania of Jordan met with volunteers from the “…Ramadan initiative, Tasbeeret May Wa Tamr, a group which distributes water and dates along the roads at sunset to people en route to their homes or on their way back from work…” according to Petra News.
During their meeting the volunteers informed Her Majesty that last year they disturbed over “…27,000 packages during Ramadan last year. This year the volunteers aims to distribute over 30,000 packages to people during the holy month of Ramadan.” At the end of the meeting Her Majesty praised the good works by the Tasbeeret May Wa Tamr volunteers.
And, with that I say, well done!
Photos courtesy of the State Department/Public Domain
On July 3, 2013, His Royal Highness Crown Prince Hussein bin Abdullah II of Jordan arrived in Aqaba, Jordan to inaugurate the newly expanded arrivals terminal at the King Hussein International Airport.
According to Petra News, the expansion aims at “…boosting competitiveness of the airport in the region to serve the economic, tourism and investment sectors by improving the efficiency of procedures for passengers which will not exceed more than 25 minutes.”
On June 27, 2013, His Majesty King Abdullah II of Jordan, accompanied by His Royal Highness Crown Prince Hussein bin Abdullah II of Jordan, held a luncheon meeting with the United States Secretary of State, Mr. John Kerry, at Al-Hummar Palace in Amman.
According to Petra News, discussions focused on the Syrian crisis in which His Majesty noted that:
“…Jordan’s stand is firm regarding this issue and calls for a comprehensive and transitional political solution to end the bloodshed and to preserve unity of Syria and is territorial integrity and limits its catastrophic consequences on the whole region.”
The Secretary of State and His Majesty also discussed ways to “…revive peace talks between the Palestinians and Israelis based on the two-state solution…”
Photo courtesy of the US Department of State/Public Domain
On June 26, 2013, His Majesty King Abdullah II of Jordan accompanied by His Royal Highness Prince Ali bin Hussein of Jordan arrived in Doha, Qatar to meet with the new Emir of Qatar, His Highness Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani.
During their meeting, according to Petra News, His Majesty wished the new emir:
“…good luck and success in leading Qatar and the Qatari people to greater success and prosperity. His Majesty also reiterated Jordan’s desire to enhance fraternal and cooperative relations between the two ‘brotherly’ countries and build on what has been achieved, serving the two countries’ common interests and boosting the joint Arab action.”
After the meeting His Majesty, Prince Ali, Sheikh Tamim, and members of Qatar’s royal family as well as His Majesty’s delegation attended a gala luncheon.
On June 25, 2013, His Majesty King Abdullah II of Jordan held an important meeting with the European Commissioner for International Cooperation, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response, Ms. Kristalina Georgieva, and the Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ms. Emma Bonino, in Amman.
According to Petra News, discussions focused on issues related to the Middle East and the Syrian crisis which:
“…Jordan is shouldering the burdens that are both heavy and increasing while straining its limited resources and infrastructures as a result of the influx of Syrian refugees, and urged the international community to continue assuming its responsibilities to support the country’s assistance to refugees…”
The Royal Correspondent 
