Prince William visits Jordan’s Roman ruins at Jerash

Amman (AFP) – Britain’s Prince William visited the Roman ruins of Jerash in northern Jordan on Monday, accompanied by his host Crown Prince Hussein bin Abdullah as part of a historic Middle East tour.

The two princes met children from Jordan and neighbouring war-torn Syria during their visit to the site, 50 kilometres (30 miles) north of Amman.

The visit to Jordan by the second in line to the British throne has been billed as a chance to bond with Hussein, a fellow graduate of Britain’s Royal Sandhurst Military Academy. 

William was also due to meet British troops based in the kingdom, before heading across the River Jordan to Israel and the Palestinian territories.

The Duke of Cambridge and the heir to the Jordanian throne strolled along Jerash’s Colonnaded Street, a paved promenade lined with towering columns.

They also visited the Temple of Artemis, built on an elevated part of the site in honour of the goddess believed to protect the city, which was at its most prosperous in the third century.

When they reached the ancient site’s theatre they were greeted by Syrian and Jordanian school children in traditional dress, who gave a performance including music and poetry.

The show was organised by the Makany Centre, a UNESCO-backed programme providing health and education to both Syrian and Jordanian pupils.

Some 650,000 Syrian refugees have registered with the United Nations in Jordan since fleeing their country’s seven-year war which was sparked by peaceful anti-government protests in 2011. 

Amman estimates the actual number is closer to 1.3 million people and says it has spent more than $10 billion (8.5 billion euros) hosting them.

William paid tribute in a speech on Sunday to “the way in which you opened your doors to hundreds of thousands of refugees”, even as Jordan said the same day that it would be unable to host any new wave of asylum seekers.

His Middle East tour will see William become the first British royal to pay official visits to both Israel and the Palestinian territories.

William, who is president of the Football Association, was flying into Jordan as England thrashed Panama 6-1 in the World Cup on Sunday, but he caught a recording of the match on television at his host’s home.