Jordanian university grants 10 scholarships to mark royal wedding

Crown Prince Al-Hussein bin Abdullah II and Rajwa Khalid Al-Saif. (Petra)
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Updated 31 May 2023
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Jordanian university grants 10 scholarships to mark royal wedding

  • Crown Prince Hussein will marry Saudi citizen Rajwa Al-Saif on Thursday

AMMAN: Jordan’s Zarqa University has granted 10 scholarships in honor of the upcoming wedding of Crown Prince Hussein bin Abdullah II and Saudi citizen Rajwa Al-Saif, the Jordan News Agency reported.

The university said on Wednesday that the scholarships would be given to students from central Zarqa governorate.

Dr. Mahmoud Abu Shaira, chairman of the university’s board of directors, congratulated King Abdullah II, Queen Rania Abdullah and the Jordanian people on the royal wedding, which takes place on Thursday, and wished the couple a happy life together.
 


Syrian government says it controls prison in Raqqa with Daesh-linked detainees

Updated 43 min 23 sec ago
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Syrian government says it controls prison in Raqqa with Daesh-linked detainees

  • Prison holds detainees linked to Daesh, and witnessed ⁠clashes in its vicinity between advancing Syrian government forces and Kurdish fighters

Syria’s Interior Ministry said on Friday it had taken over Al-Aktan prison in the city of Raqqa ​in northeastern Syria, a facility that was formerly under the control of Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).

The prison has been holding detainees linked to the militant group Daesh, and witnessed clashes in its vicinity this week between advancing Syrian government forces and the SDF.

It ‌was not ‌immediately clear how many ‌Daesh ⁠detainees ​remain in Al-Aktan ‌prison as the US military has started transferring up to 7,000 prisoners linked to the militant Islamist group from Syrian jails to neighboring Iraq. US officials say the detainees are citizens of many countries, including in Europe.

“Specialized teams were ⁠formed from the counter-terrorism department and other relevant authorities to ‌take over the tasks of guarding ‍and securing the prison ‍and controlling the security situation inside it,” ‍the Interior Ministry said in a statement.

Under a sweeping integration deal agreed on Sunday, responsibility for prisons housing Daesh detainees was meant to be transferred to ​the Syrian government.

The SDF said on Monday it was battling Syrian government forces near ⁠Al-Aktan and that the seizure of the prison by the government forces “could have serious security repercussions that threaten stability and pave the way for a return to chaos and terrorism.”

The US transfer of Daesh prisoners follows the rapid collapse of Kurdish-led forces in northeast Syria. Concerns over prison security intensified after the escape on Tuesday of roughly 200 low-level Daesh fighters from Syria’s ‌Shaddadi prison. Syrian government forces later recaptured many of them.