Jordan blamed Israel on Sunday for the recent escalation in Palestine and said it expected the violence to worsen, after a series of rocket attacks and Israeli air strikes in Gaza, Lebanon and Syria.
“The Israeli government bears responsibility for the escalation in Jerusalem and in all occupied Palestinian territories,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Sinan Al Majali said.
Increased violence in the West Bank and Jerusalem, which has risen since an ultra right wing government took power in Israel in late December, spread across borders this Easter weekend.
Israel bombed targets in Syria and Lebanon in the last two days after rockets were fired from the two countries.
One rocket exploded over north Jordan overnight, the Jordanian military said, highlighting the proximity of the kingdom to Iranian-backed militant groups.
Mr Al Majali said Israel was to blame “for the deterioration that will become worse” if it does not halt its incursions into Al Aqsa Mosque and what he described as “pressure” on worshippers.
Jordan has a long border with Israel but the two countries signed a peace treaty in 1994.
The Hashemite monarchy, which has ruled Jordan since it was established as a British protectorate in 1921, claims custodianship of Al Aqsa, one of the holiest places in Islam.
Also on Sunday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken held a call with Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation.
Sheikh Abdullah stressed "the importance of stopping the escalation between the Palestinians and the Israelis and working towards advancing paths of peace and stability in the region for the prosperity and prosperity of its peoples", according to official UAE news agency Wam.
Footage in the last several days of Israeli police beating worshippers inside the mosque prompted condemnation by friends and foes. Anti-Israel rhetoric was also sharpened by pro-Iranian militant groups with bases in Gaza, Lebanon and Syria.
Israel says raids by its police on Al Aqsa were meant to remove what it described as extremists armed with firecrackers and stones.
Mr Al Majali said Israel, as the occupying power under international law, must refrain from any measures that would undermine the sanctity of the holy place.
On Sunday, Pope Francis said the renewed violence "threatens the desired climate of trust and mutual respect needed to resume dialogue between Israelis and Palestinians," at an address in the Vatican's Saint Peter's square.
His remarks came after Israeli jets hit military targets in Syria in response to rockets launched towards the Golan Heights, a strategic Syrian plateau overrun by Israel in 1967.
The pro-Hezbollah Lebanese Al Mayadeen TV said the rocket fire was claimed by Al Quds Brigades, the armed wing of the Islamic Jihad movement, one of the most pro-Iranian Palestinian factions. The group has offices in Damascus.
Syrian official media reported explosions near Damascus. Israel said its military responded to six rockets fired overnight from Syria with artillery and air strikes, including attacks using drones.
The target, the Israeli military said, were rocket launchers, a Syrian army compound and radar systems. These systems were provided by Russia, which intervened in 2015 in the Syrian civil war in support of President Bashar Al Assad.
On Thursday, more than 30 rockets were fired towards Israel from southern Lebanon, drawing Israeli retaliation on sites linked to the Islamist movement Hamas in Lebanon and Gaza.
In Lebanon, Hezbollah’s media office announced that the militant group’s chief, Hassan Nasrallah, received a delegation headed by Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh on Sunday.
The two discussed “the most important developments in occupied Palestine, the course of events at Al Aqsa Mosque, and the escalating resistance in the West Bank and Gaza, in addition to general political developments in the region, the readiness of the resistance axis and the co-operation of its parties”, the media office said.
In the West Bank Israeli forces shot dead a Palestinian man during a confrontation at the weekend, while on Sunday, Mr Netanyahu named two British-Israeli sisters who were killed in a gun attack in the occupied West Bank.
Meanwhile, in Jerusalem there were no reports of large-scale violence on Sunday.
In 2021 ties between Jordan and Israel deteriorated after violence in Al Aqsa led to an 11-day war between Israel and Hamas, one of the main pro-Iranian groups in the Middle East.
Jordan has channels with Hamas, although it expelled most of the group’s leadership in the late 1990s. A large proportion of the kingdom’s 10 million population are of Palestinian origin.
The BIO:
He became the first Emirati to climb Mount Everest in 2011, from the south section in Nepal
He ascended Mount Everest the next year from the more treacherous north Tibetan side
By 2015, he had completed the Explorers Grand Slam
Last year, he conquered K2, the world’s second-highest mountain located on the Pakistan-Chinese border
He carries dried camel meat, dried dates and a wheat mixture for the final summit push
His new goal is to climb 14 peaks that are more than 8,000 metres above sea level
CONFIRMED%20LINE-UP
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The biog
From: Upper Egypt
Age: 78
Family: a daughter in Egypt; a son in Dubai and his wife, Nabila
Favourite Abu Dhabi activity: walking near to Emirates Palace
Favourite building in Abu Dhabi: Emirates Palace
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
AIR
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The%20BaaS%20ecosystem
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STAY%2C%20DAUGHTER
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Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Company profile
Company: Rent Your Wardrobe
Date started: May 2021
Founder: Mamta Arora
Based: Dubai
Sector: Clothes rental subscription
Stage: Bootstrapped, self-funded
Who has been sanctioned?
Daniella Weiss and Nachala
Described as 'the grandmother of the settler movement', she has encouraged the expansion of settlements for decades. The 79 year old leads radical settler movement Nachala, whose aim is for Israel to annex Gaza and the occupied West Bank, where it helps settlers built outposts.
Harel Libi & Libi Construction and Infrastructure
Libi has been involved in threatening and perpetuating acts of aggression and violence against Palestinians. His firm has provided logistical and financial support for the establishment of illegal outposts.
Zohar Sabah
Runs a settler outpost named Zohar’s Farm and has previously faced charges of violence against Palestinians. He was indicted by Israel’s State Attorney’s Office in September for allegedly participating in a violent attack against Palestinians and activists in the West Bank village of Muarrajat.
Coco’s Farm and Neria’s Farm
These are illegal outposts in the West Bank, which are at the vanguard of the settler movement. According to the UK, they are associated with people who have been involved in enabling, inciting, promoting or providing support for activities that amount to “serious abuse”.
Dengue%20fever%20symptoms
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Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
MATCH INFO
Watford 1 (Deulofeu 80' p)
Chelsea 2 (Abraham 5', Pulisic 55')
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
Nick's journey in numbers
Countries so far: 85
Flights: 149
Steps: 3.78 million
Calories: 220,000
Floors climbed: 2,000
Donations: GPB37,300
Prostate checks: 5
Blisters: 15
Bumps on the head: 2
Dog bites: 1
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Brief scores:
Toss: Pakhtunkhwa Zalmi, chose to field
Environment Agency: 193-3 (20 ov)
Ikhlaq 76 not out, Khaliya 58, Ahsan 55
Pakhtunkhwa Zalmi: 194-2 (18.3 ov)
Afridi 95 not out, Sajid 55, Rizwan 36 not out
Result: Pakhtunkhwa won by 8 wickets
Emergency
Director: Kangana Ranaut
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry
Rating: 2/5
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The specs
Price, base / as tested Dh12 million
Engine 8.0-litre quad-turbo, W16
Gearbox seven-speed dual clutch auto
Power 1479 @ 6,700rpm
Torque 1600Nm @ 2,000rpm 0-100kph: 2.6 seconds 0-200kph: 6.1 seconds
Top speed 420 kph (governed)
Fuel economy, combined 35.2L / 100km (est)
