Jordan's justice and interior ministers were sacked on Sunday after reports they were seen in public breaching social distancing rules.
The two ministers are the main officials in the Cabinet in charge of enforcing coronavirus rules, which were toughened last week after a surge in infections.
Official media said King Abdullah accepted the resignation of Bassam Al Talhouni and Samir Mubaidin, after Prime Minister Bisher Al Khasawneh asked them to quit.
A relative of one of the ministers said the two men attended a large banquet at a restaurant in Amman last week. The guests sat close to each other without wearing masks.
"There were other officials present and they acted as if there was no coronavirus," the relative, who did not want to be named, told The National.
Reports on two government-linked news websites quoted Dirar Al Saraira, the host, as saying that the two ministers did not stay long and sat far apart from the other guests.
The sacking of the two ministers enhances the government's effort to show its seriousness about improving the dismal observance of coronavirus precautions.
A surge in cases prompted authorities to enhance curfew measures and increase penalties last week to force more people to wear masks.
Mr Mubaidin is the second interior minister to be sacked in Jordan in less than three months.
King Abdullah appointed him after mass breaches of coronavirus curfews by tribes both celebrating and protesting against elections of the country's nominal parliament in November. Turnout was record low at less than 30 per cent.
Most of the 385,000 coronavirus infections and 4,675 deaths in Jordan were recorded since October. Doctors say at least 20 per cent of the country's 10 million population have been infected.
The government said last week that a more infectious coronavirus variant first reported in Britain had become the dominant strain of the pandemic in Jordan.
The enhanced restrictions ban on all movement on Fridays and extended a nightly curfew by two hours to run from 10pm to 6am.
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Best Foreign Language Film nominees
Capernaum (Lebanon)
Cold War (Poland)
Never Look Away (Germany)
Roma (Mexico)
Shoplifters (Japan)
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
MATCH INFO
Cricket World Cup League Two
Oman, UAE, Namibia
Al Amerat, Muscat
Results
Oman beat UAE by five wickets
UAE beat Namibia by eight runs
Namibia beat Oman by 52 runs
UAE beat Namibia by eight wickets
UAE v Oman - abandoned
Oman v Namibia - abandoned
Quick pearls of wisdom
Focus on gratitude: And do so deeply, he says. “Think of one to three things a day that you’re grateful for. It needs to be specific, too, don’t just say ‘air.’ Really think about it. If you’re grateful for, say, what your parents have done for you, that will motivate you to do more for the world.”
Know how to fight: Shetty married his wife, Radhi, three years ago (he met her in a meditation class before he went off and became a monk). He says they’ve had to learn to respect each other’s “fighting styles” – he’s a talk it-out-immediately person, while she needs space to think. “When you’re having an argument, remember, it’s not you against each other. It’s both of you against the problem. When you win, they lose. If you’re on a team you have to win together.”
LA LIGA FIXTURES
Thursday (All UAE kick-off times)
Sevilla v Real Betis (midnight)
Friday
Granada v Real Betis (9.30pm)
Valencia v Levante (midnight)
Saturday
Espanyol v Alaves (4pm)
Celta Vigo v Villarreal (7pm)
Leganes v Real Valladolid (9.30pm)
Mallorca v Barcelona (midnight)
Sunday
Atletic Bilbao v Atletico Madrid (4pm)
Real Madrid v Eibar (9.30pm)
Real Sociedad v Osasuna (midnight)
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Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
