His Majesty King Abdullah, the Supreme Commander of the Jordan Armed Forces, on Sunday inaugurated the Prince Hashim bin Abdullah II hospital in Aqaba.

King Abdullah unveiled the commemorative plaque and toured the Royal Medical Services-run hospital, which was established upon His Majesty directives at a total cost of JD62 million.

The King, accompanied by Chairman of the Joint Chiefs-of-Staff Gen. Mashal Al Zaben, listened to a briefing presented by Royal Medical Services Director Maj. Gen. Khalaf Jader Sarhan about the 212-bed facility that will provide healthcare to residents of Aqaba and nearby regions, those covered under civil and military health insurance and visitors to the port city.

Sarhan said the hospital is equipped with the latest medical technologies and offers a range of medical specialities, adding that the new hospital means that no more medical cases will be referred to the King Hussein Medical Centre in Amman.

The six-storey hospital was built on a 150-dunum area and has enough staff and equipment to handle some 800 cases per day.

Royal Court Chief Fayez Tarawneh, His Majesty’s Office Director Imad Fakhoury, Secretary General of the Royal Court Yousef Issawi and Aqaba Governor Fawaz Irshaidat attended the inauguration.