More than 300 Jordanians braved heavy rains to protest against economic policy and alleged corruption in Amman on Thursday evening, as a youth-led protest movement entered its fourth week.
Unappeased by a recent high-profile corruption arrest, protesters gathered near the country’s prime ministry to chant: “We know who the real corrupt are."
A similar demonstration last week ended in arrests after clashes with security forces, but Thursday's protest remained calm under the watchful eye of hundreds of riot gear-clad police.
Protesters directed their anger at Prime Minister Omar Razzaz, who was appointed in late June to take part in economic reform, changing “Razzaz we are fed up, you are meeting us with taxes not reforms”.
“We are here simply to express our refusal of the wrong economic policies pushed by the IMF that we are now feeling the harmful effects of,” said Ibrahim Qassem, 25, who came from outside Amman to take part in the protest.
“We agree that you have to take down those who are corrupt, but we know it’s more than just one person. We want those within the system who enabled this corruption to go on for years to be held accountable,” Mr Qassem said.
Driving Jordan’s renewed protests is a series of unpopular austerity measures, which include lowering the threshold for taxable income, while unemployment stands at 18.6 per cent, rising to over 40 per cent of those under 30.
Thursday’s protests followed the arrest of 18 participants in last week’s demonstration during clashes that injured several policemen and protesters.
In response to criticism of a heavy-handed response by security forces, the government said it “does not seek to silence or place restrictions on citizens, it only seeks to monitor citizens’ demands, analyse them and respond to them if possible.”
The Jordanian National Centre for Human Rights contended however that the arrests “represent a violation of the right to peaceful assembly and freedom of expression.”
Late Thursday, lawyers representing the arrested protesters announced that seven of the 18 had been released on bail. Demonstrators chanted for the release of the remaining activists, carrying banners reading “your arrests will not intimidate us”.
“They have tried to arrest us and depict us as outlaws, but we know and citizens know that we are average people fed up with the lies,” said one female protester who asked to withhold her name out of fear of retribution.
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On Tuesday, Jordan announced the extradition and arrest of Awni Muttee, a businessman at the centre of a counterfeit cigarette ring believed to have cost the government $200 million in lost taxes, touted by the government as proof of its war on graft.
But protesters vowed to continue demanding structural changes.
“We are going to continue our protest until we see a change in economic policies and high up officials in court – not just middle men,” said Mohammed, a 30-year-old protester from southern Jordan.
Results
4pm: Al Bastakiya Listed US$300,000 (Dirt) 1,900m; Winner: Emblem Storm, Oisin Murphy (jockey), Satish Seemar (trainer).
4.35pm: Mahab Al Shimaal Group 3 $350,000 (D) 1,200m; Winner: Wafy, Tadhg O’Shea, Satish Seemar.
5.10pm: Nad Al Sheba Turf Group 3 $350,000 (Turf) 1,200m; Winner: Wildman Jack, Fernando Jara, Doug O’Neill.
5.45pm: Burj Nahaar Group 3 $350,000 (D) 1,600m; Winner: Salute The Soldier, Adrie de Vries, Fawzi Nass.
6.20pm: Jebel Hatta Group 1 $400,000 (T) 1,800m; Winner: Barney Roy, William Buick, Charlie Appleby.
6.55pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round-3 Group 1 $600,000 (D) 2,000m; Winner: Matterhorn, Mickael Barzalona, Salem bin Ghadayer.
7.30pm: Dubai City Of Gold Group 2 $350,000 (T) 2,410m; Winner: Loxley, Mickael Barzalona, Charlie Appleby.
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
Dolittle
Director: Stephen Gaghan
Stars: Robert Downey Jr, Michael Sheen
One-and-a-half out of five stars
Washmen Profile
Date Started: May 2015
Founders: Rami Shaar and Jad Halaoui
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Laundry
Employees: 170
Funding: about $8m
Funders: Addventure, B&Y Partners, Clara Ventures, Cedar Mundi Partners, Henkel Ventures
PROFILE BOX
Company name: Overwrite.ai
Founder: Ayman Alashkar
Started: Established in 2020
Based: Dubai International Financial Centre, Dubai
Sector: PropTech
Initial investment: Self-funded by founder
Funding stage: Seed funding, in talks with angel investors
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
What is Folia?
Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal's new plant-based menu will launch at Four Seasons hotels in Dubai this November. A desire to cater to people looking for clean, healthy meals beyond green salad is what inspired Prince Khaled and American celebrity chef Matthew Kenney to create Folia. The word means "from the leaves" in Latin, and the exclusive menu offers fine plant-based cuisine across Four Seasons properties in Los Angeles, Bahrain and, soon, Dubai.
Kenney specialises in vegan cuisine and is the founder of Plant Food Wine and 20 other restaurants worldwide. "I’ve always appreciated Matthew’s work," says the Saudi royal. "He has a singular culinary talent and his approach to plant-based dining is prescient and unrivalled. I was a fan of his long before we established our professional relationship."
Folia first launched at The Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills in July 2018. It is available at the poolside Cabana Restaurant and for in-room dining across the property, as well as in its private event space. The food is vibrant and colourful, full of fresh dishes such as the hearts of palm ceviche with California fruit, vegetables and edible flowers; green hearb tacos filled with roasted squash and king oyster barbacoa; and a savoury coconut cream pie with macadamia crust.
In March 2019, the Folia menu reached Gulf shores, as it was introduced at the Four Seasons Hotel Bahrain Bay, where it is served at the Bay View Lounge. Next, on Tuesday, November 1 – also known as World Vegan Day – it will come to the UAE, to the Four Seasons Resort Dubai at Jumeirah Beach and the Four Seasons DIFC, both properties Prince Khaled has spent "considerable time at and love".
There are also plans to take Folia to several more locations throughout the Middle East and Europe.
While health-conscious diners will be attracted to the concept, Prince Khaled is careful to stress Folia is "not meant for a specific subset of customers. It is meant for everyone who wants a culinary experience without the negative impact that eating out so often comes with."
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