A female Jordanian Air Force pilot took to the skies in an F16 fighter jet ― the first such flight by a woman in the kingdom.
Lt Saba Al Thiabat "flew solo in the skies of the kingdom" from the Mouafaq Al Salti Airbase east of Amman, the official news agency said late on Wednesday.
Brig Gen Mohammed Hiasat, head of the Air Force, said: "This achievement represents support by his majesty King Abdullah for the role of women in general and especially military women."
There are few women are in the Jordanian Air Force, which employees 10,000 personnel, although there has been an increased effort in the past two years to recruit women in combat roles in the military.
One of King Abdullah's two daughters, Princess Salma, is a military pilot. The King's sister, Princess Aisha, was also in the army and helped to set up the Directorate of Military Women’s Affairs, in 1995.
King Abdullah headed Special Forces before he took the throne in 1999, succeeding his father, the late king Hussein.
Women comprise 17 per cent of the 104,000 personnel in the Jordanian military. But most of the female personnel are medical staff working at military hospitals.
The Air Force has 44 F16 aircraft and plans to replace them with 16 more advanced versions bought from the US at a cost of $4.2 billion.
In February last year, the US State Department approved the sale of 16 planes to Jordan. A signing ceremony was held in Amman last week.
About Tenderd
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The finalists
Player of the Century, 2001-2020: Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus), Lionel Messi (Barcelona), Mohamed Salah (Liverpool), Ronaldinho
Coach of the Century, 2001-2020: Pep Guardiola (Manchester City), Jose Mourinho (Tottenham Hotspur), Zinedine Zidane (Real Madrid), Sir Alex Ferguson
Club of the Century, 2001-2020: Al Ahly (Egypt), Bayern Munich (Germany), Barcelona (Spain), Real Madrid (Spain)
Player of the Year: Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)
Club of the Year: Bayern Munich, Liverpool, Real Madrid
Coach of the Year: Gian Piero Gasperini (Atalanta), Hans-Dieter Flick (Bayern Munich), Jurgen Klopp (Liverpool)
Agent of the Century, 2001-2020: Giovanni Branchini, Jorge Mendes, Mino Raiola
One in nine do not have enough to eat
Created in 1961, the World Food Programme is pledged to fight hunger worldwide as well as providing emergency food assistance in a crisis.
One of the organisation’s goals is the Zero Hunger Pledge, adopted by the international community in 2015 as one of the 17 Sustainable Goals for Sustainable Development, to end world hunger by 2030.
The WFP, a branch of the United Nations, is funded by voluntary donations from governments, businesses and private donations.
Almost two thirds of its operations currently take place in conflict zones, where it is calculated that people are more than three times likely to suffer from malnutrition than in peaceful countries.
It is currently estimated that one in nine people globally do not have enough to eat.
On any one day, the WFP estimates that it has 5,000 lorries, 20 ships and 70 aircraft on the move.
Outside emergencies, the WFP provides school meals to up to 25 million children in 63 countries, while working with communities to improve nutrition. Where possible, it buys supplies from developing countries to cut down transport cost and boost local economies.
