His Majesty King Abdullah on Saturday toured the Baqaa refugee camp and instructed authorities to upgrade services provided to residents.

At a meeting with representatives and notables from the camp, which lies 13km north of Amman, King Abdullah directed concerned agencies to take action on the needs of the camp’s residents that include the creation of a slaughterhouse to address environmental problems in Baqaa, the largest of the Kingdom’s 13 refugee camps.

Their requests also include the rehabilitation of the public transport terminals inside the camp, which they said are currently the cause of traffic congestion and pollution, providing the nearby Prince Hussein Ben Abdullah II Hospital with the needed medical staff and creating a comprehensive development centre for serving the camp’s residents.

They told the King that the camp also needs a cemetery, support for income-generating projects and sports centres in the area, which is inhabited by 120,000 people living on almost 14 square kilometres.

Voicing appreciation for services Jordan provides for the refugee camps in the country, the community leaders also highlighted King Abdullah’s support for the Palestinian cause and the Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. They said that his stand plays a major role in enhancing the steadfastness of the Palestinians in the face of Israeli occupation.

In a speech on behalf of the camp’s residents, MP Abdullah Nweirat said the refugee community supports Jordan's national unity fully, and voiced appreciation of the King’s support for the Palestinians’ right to statehood and an end to the occupation.

“All have a role to play in preserving national unity regardless of differences in approaches and political views,” he said.

On reform, the lawmaker said the process is “not merely slogans chanted during demonstrations; it is a way of life”, noting that reform has been ongoing in Jordan since its creation.

Reviewing the camp’s needs, he called for the creation of a community college in the adjacent town of Ain Al Basha and a sports city in the area.

Mohammad Amaireh, head of the camp’s services committee, called for rehabilitating sewage networks and addressing the problem of pollution in the camp.

The camp’s representatives also called for improving the physical conditions of the camp’s schools and more efforts to address poverty and unemployment.