REPORT: ICAO LOOKING INTO JORDAN COMPLAINT AGAINST ISRAELI AIRPORT

Bethlehem, 10 Shawwal 1436/26 July 2015 (MINA) – The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) is investigating a complaint submitted by Jordan against Israel’s construction of an airport near Aqaba, a minister said Saturday.

Jordanian Minister of Transportation Lina Shabib told Jordan’s daily newspaper al-Ghad that the ICAO planned to vote on Jordan’s submission, Ma’an News Agency quoted by Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA).

The new Israeli airport to be called Timna, argued Shabib, is too close to Jordan’s King Hussein international airport — located in the large coastal city of Aqaba — possibly effecting aerial frequencies of the regional hub and leading to accidents.

Israel, she added, had continued to build the Timna airport despite Jordan’s vocal opposition to the project.

The Jordanian minister highlighted that the country’s foreign and transport ministries would continue to address the issue through relevant international organizations.

In 1994 the two countries signed a peace agreement that included several joint economic and infrastructure projects, one of which was a jointly-operated airport that never came into fruition.

Potential for the joint airport fully dissipated when Israel started in 2013 to construct the Timna airport, around 20 kilometers from the Israeli resort city of Eilat, and less than 10 kilometers from Aqaba.

The head of Jordan’s Civil Aviation Regulatory Commission, Mohammad Amin Al-Quran, told Israeli media at the time: “When we found out about the location of the new Israeli airport, we realized there was a problem.

“Based on the details we have, the plan does not meet international standards. The distance between the Jordanian international airport in Aqaba and the airport that Israel wants to build is insufficient, and this could endanger planes and passengers on both sides,” he added.  (T/P010/NMT)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)