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• Health Ministry cracks down on smoking in public places  

The Health MinistryHealth Ministry issued a circular on Wednesday to ministries and public and private institutions prohibiting smoking inside buildings designated as public places, according to the recently endorsed Public Health Law.

Director of health awareness at the ministry, Malek Habashneh, said that under the new law, the ministry has the authority to enforce the law and impose stiffer penalties on violators, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

According to the recently endorsed law, a public place is identified as hospitals, healthcare centres, schools, cinemas, theatres, libraries, museums, public and non-governmental buildings, public transport vehicles, airports, closed playgrounds, lectures halls and any other location to be determined by the minister.

According to the law, any person who is caught smoking at a public place is subject to a penalty of imprisonment ranging from one week to one month or a JD15-JD25 fine. The same penalties apply to those who sell cigarettes to underage youths

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