SUBSCRIBE TODAY TO CONNECT WITH AFFILIATES FROM AROUND THE WORLD :: SIGN UP HERE >>
 Featured Links
Syndicated News from JordanJordan's 'Eighth Circle' Turns into Hell Over Abbadi Supporter RallyDate Added: Sat, 04 Feb 2012 14:34:25 GMT
Housing Bank ups 2011 net after-tax profit by 13.1% to JD100 millionDate Added: Sat, 04 Feb 2012 22:07:17 GMT
Jordan participates in AUASS conferenceDate Added: Fri, 03 Feb 2012 14:12:34 GMT
Jordan- 'HIV tests not mandatory on entry for any nationality'Date Added: Thu, 02 Feb 2012 08:17:14 GMT
Jordanian Islamists, Hamas avoided contacts in Amman 'to signal separate ways'Date Added: Thu, 02 Feb 2012 08:17:20 GMT
Jordan- Reassuring rideDate Added: Thu, 02 Feb 2012 08:17:21 GMT
Jordan- 'Israel must focus on peace, not security through arms'Date Added: Thu, 02 Feb 2012 08:17:24 GMT
Jordan puts its potentials at service of Libyans, says envoyDate Added: Thu, 02 Feb 2012 20:23:04 GMT
Syndicate to probe alleged kickbacks to journalistsDate Added: Sat, 04 Feb 2012 09:42:32 GMT
Jordan- Experts expect rising prices of commodities this yearResults Page:Date Added: Wed, 01 Feb 2012 08:10:23 GMT
Results 1 - 10 of Headlines for Jordan
Jordan HeadlinesResults Page:JORDAN’S KING ABDULLAH SEEKS ASSURANCE FROM RIYADHDate Added: Tuesday, November 12th, 2002Contributed by: RCN Administrator
Jordanian King Abdullah traveled to Saudi Arabia on Nov. 12 to discuss the looming U.S. war against Iraq with Saudi King Fahd and Crown Prince Abdullah, Agence France-Presse reports.
Amman has denied backing U.S. war plans, but reports suggest that U.S. forces and equipment will be based in the tiny kingdom to support military strikes against Baghdad. However, neighboring Saudi Arabia so far has failed to back Washington’s war effort and says it will not allow strikes on Iraq to be launched from its territory. Riyadh has made several moves to block the steps toward war -- possibly including sponsorship of a coup plot in Qatar. Jordan’s King Abdullah might be trying to prevent a conflict between Amman and Riyadh should the United States go to war with Iraq. The recent assassination of a U.S. Agency for International Development worker in Amman and the arrests of more than 40 alleged Islamists in Maan -- including several foreigners -- suggest that Jordan is worried about domestic unrest and violence during a U.S.-Iraq war. King Abdullah could be seeking assurances from Riyadh that, despite its opposition to the war, Saudi Arabia will not encourage radicalism in neighboring countries. VULNERABILITIES IN THE U.S. MILITARY’S SUPPLY CHAIN: AQABA PORTDate Added: Monday, August 19th, 2002Contributed by: RCN Administrator
The United States has chosen Jordan as a base for conducting at least some level of operations in a military campaign against Iraq. The U.S. Military Sealift Command will charter a vessel to transport 48,000 square feet of bulk cargo, ammunition, helicopters and tracked and wheeled vehicles to an undisclosed port on the Red Sea, Bloomberg reported Aug. 13. According to a U.S. Central Command spokesperson, the materiel will be used for military exercises in Jordan.
Jordan’s port at Aqaba is the most likely destination for the equipment. But security at the port is questionable: There are a number of vulnerabilities in the Gulf of Aqaba, in the areas surrounding the port city and in the city itself that could leave U.S. warships as well as military personnel and assets throughout Jordan vulnerable to attack by Islamist militants from neighboring Saudi Arabia. The arms transport to Jordan likely is part of U.S. preparations for a future campaign against Iraq. According to a July 12 report in the London daily The Times, Amman has agreed to allow U.S. troops to use its territory to prepare for a possible strike on Iraq. Jordan has denied the existence of such an agreement. Given that securing the supply line for U.S. troops based in Jordan would be vital to the success of operations into Iraq or other neighboring Arab states, Aqaba will be a key logistical node. This will make it an attractive target for al Qaeda and other groups opposed to a U.S. war on Iraq and to the presence in general of U.S. military forces in the Middle East. Some of the equipment sent to Jordan no doubt will come through Aqaba. The port lies at the northernmost tip of the Gulf of Aqaba, with Israel to the west and Saudi Arabia to the southeast. The port, which is Jordan’s only access to the sea, and the city of Aqaba are mirrored by the Israeli port city and resort town of Elat on the opposite shore. It is possible Elat might also be used by U.S. forces to transit supplies and troops into Jordan. Although the port itself is tiny, its layout -- a long "L" running down the coastline -- prevents it from being easily closed by the sinking of a single ship. The port’s berths directly face the gulf, and there is no narrow channel to pass through in order to dock. For U.S. forces, however, the port of Aqaba presents two key problems: It is very close to Saudi Arabia, a known haven for supporters and members of al Qaeda, and it is tiny. To get to Aqaba, or to Elat, ships must travel up the east arm of the Red Sea where it forks at the tip of the Sinai Peninsula. Ships passing through the narrow Strait of Tiran from the Red Sea into the Gulf of Aqaba could be vulnerable to attack. The strait is patrolled by the Italian contingent of Multinational Force and Observers, an independent international peacekeeping force stationed at the Sinai Peninsula to monitor security arrangements between Egypt and Israel. The contingent secures the strait and its approaches with three ships, but a maritime presence covers the strait for only 12 hours each day. This leaves open the possibility that militants could try to strike at passing ships. Closing the strait would be difficult, given that it is at least 3 miles wide at its narrowest point. After passing through Tiran, ships must travel up the gulf flanked by the Egyptian and Saudi coastlines. U.S. forces occupy the Egyptian side, and ships would be beyond the range of attacks from rocket-propelled grenades or light arms from either coastline. Even so, ships passing through would be at a disadvantage should an attack from the Saudi side immobilize them because much of the coastline is mountainous and provides natural cover for any attacking force. Even after ships dock at Aqaba, they are vulnerable. The bombing in 2000 of the U.S.S. Cole at Aden has heightened security measures for all U.S. warships docking in Middle Eastern ports. For instance, U.S. warships tied up at Aqaba follow strict security measures, including periodically pulling anchor and moving out of the harbor. But the port is still open to residential traffic, and vetting everyone on the docks would be impossible. In June, a U.S. Marine Corps contingent conducting exercises in southern Jordan cut short its visit due to a potential security threat. According to a report by Deutsche Press-Agentur quoting unnamed sources, the U.S. troops decided to pull out after only 36 hours due to clashes between Jordanian police and citizens in Aqaba. The residents of the city itself also may resort to violence in opposition to the presence of U.S. military forces. Six of the eight Jordanians recently tried in Amman for smuggling arms to Palestinians in the West Bank were from Aqaba. Four of them were charged with possession and transportation of explosives, Agence France-Presse reported. Another possibility is that radical members of al Qaeda operating out of Saudi Arabia might penetrate Aqaba in hopes of launching an assault on U.S. ships or personnel there. The border between Jordan and Saudi Arabia is porous, and there is near-constant traffic back and forth by Bedouin tribes, smugglers and merchants. No evidence has emerged suggesting that al Qaeda or its supporters are operating in northwestern Saudi Arabia. However, Osama bin Laden once spent time in the region, which is where his mother lived. Because this area is sparsely populated and filled with hills and valleys, it would be possible for individuals or even groups to travel unobserved. U.S. warships docked at Aqaba could present irresistible targets for al Qaeda due to the port’s location next to Saudi Arabia, the ease with which militants could pass across the border and the strategic role Jordan would play in supporting a U.S. military operation against Iraq. The U.S. military no doubt has taken every precaution and will take many more. Only time will tell, however, if they will be sufficient.
Results Page:
JORDANIAN-AMERICAN INDICTED ON $12 MILLION PHONY CHECK CHARGEDate Added: Wednesday, July 24th, 2002Contributed by: RCN Administrator
DETROIT — A man arrested at Detroit Metropolitan Airport after federal officials say he was found with $12 million in phony cashiers checks has been charged with possession of counterfeit securities and smuggling of merchandise into the United States.
Omar Shishani was arrested last week after arriving on a flight from Indonesia. He was indicted on Tuesday. Officials say they found nine cashiers checks, believed to be forged, during a search of the 47-year-old Dearborn man’s bags. A U.S. law enforcement official also has said the FBI is investigating whether Shishani has ties to terrorist organizations, but his name is not on the terrorist watch list created by U.S. intelligence agencies. Shishani has been in custody since his arrest. He was to appear in court Wednesday for a detention hearing. A message left with Shishani’s attorney was not immediately returned. Two of the checks found were for $5 million each; two were for $500,000 each; and five were for $200,000 each, an affidavit said. The checks, labeled "cashier check," were purportedly issued by the Pomona, Calif., branch of West America Bank. Six of the checks were dated June 10, 2002, and made payable to "Baharuddin Masse," according the indictment. The other checks were dated Sept. 3, Sept. 5 and Sept. 6, 2002. Shishani’s brother, Ali, said Wednesday that he had little information on the checks found in his brother’s possession other than they were given to his brother in Indonesia, to which Omar Shishani often travels on business trips. "My brother didn’t break any laws," Ali Shishani said from Amman, Jordan. "The checks were in his pocket, but he didn’t use them or try to cash them." A fraud investigator for the bank said there was no Pomona branch and the checks were labeled incorrectly, Special Agent Clarence T. Laster of the U.S. Secret Service said in the affidavit. The bank’s authentic checks are labeled "official check." Several people have been arrested in the Las Vegas area for passing similar checks, Laster said. Authorities have searched Shishani’s home, but the results of the search were sealed. Ali Shishani said the family was trying to collect $15,000 in bail money. He declined say whether the family was seeking donations. But he said the money was requested by Omar Shishani’s lawyer. "We don’t have anything close to that figure yet," he said. "If we weren’t able to raise it soon, we may sell some property in Jordan." Family members in Jordan say they have not been in touch with the Shishani or his lawyer, but have spoken with seven other brothers in the United States. Ahmad Shishani, another of Shishani’s brothers in Jordan, said Omar Shishani has "absolutely no links at all with any terrorist group or Al Qaeda" and that his brother is simply a wealthy computer salesman who travels often. Omar Shishani was born to a middle-class family in the minority Chechen community in Zarqa, 17 miles northeast of the capital, Amman. He immigrated to the United States 20 years ago, where he married an alien resident of Japanese origin. He holds both the Jordanian and American passports. The maximum penalty for the possession of counterfeit securities charge is 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine; for smuggling of merchandise the maximum penalty is five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Results Page:
: MAN WHO LIVED WITH SEPT. 11 HIJACKERS TO BE RELEASEDDate Added: Thursday, July 11th, 2002Contributed by: RCN Administrator
By ANGELA POTTER, Associated Press
BALTIMORE (July 11, 2002 10:27 a.m. EDT) - A Jordanian man who lived with two Sept. 11 hijackers has been ordered released from federal custody and is to be monitored electronically at his father’s home. Rasmi Al-Shannaq, 27, is charged with obtaining a fake visa from the U.S. embassy in Qatar. If convicted, he could face up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. U.S. District Judge Andre Davis on Wednesday upheld a magistrate’s ruling earlier in the day to free the man, whose friends and relatives had pledged $410,000 for his release. "This is the first step in a long process," said defense attorney Jim Wyda, adding that his client should be released by Thursday and would go into immigration custody. A date has not yet been set for an immigration hearing, an immigration official said. Al-Shannaq was taken into custody June 24 during an FBI and Immigration and Naturalization Service raid on his Baltimore home. The men he lived with are suspected of hijacking American Airlines Flight 77, which crashed into the Pentagon. Al-Shannaq has acknowledged living with the hijackers. Prosecutors say he could pose a danger to the public and is a flight risk because he is a Jordanian citizen and because of the charge against him. In her ruling earlier Wednesday, U.S. Magistrate Susan Gauvey said Al-Shannaq had no criminal history and Assistant U.S. Attorney Harvey Eisenberg had conceded that there was no attempt to link Al-Shannaq with Sept. 11. |
