His Majesty King Abdullah on Thursday instructed the government to extend financial support to awqaf officials attending to the affairs of religious shrines in Jerusalem.

The move is the latest in a series of measures to protect Jerusalem holy sites threatened by Israeli measures, discussed at a meeting last month between His Majesty and several officials and key Jerusalemites.

At September's meeting, King Abdullah reiterated Jordan's support for the holy places in Jerusalem and for the steadfastness of Muslim and Christian Arabs in the holy city.

The King said that preserving the holy places in Jerusalem is a “top Jordanian Hashemite priority and the Kingdom will spare no effort to achieve this goal”.