Israel and Jordan officially inaugurated their respective embassies in Amman and Tel Aviv this week.
At a ceremony Sunday in the Jordanian capital of Amman, officials raised the Israeli flag and installed a mezuzah at the entrance to their temporary embassy.
Israeli officials selected the Forte Grand Hotel in downtown Amman to serve as their embassy until a permanent site is chose by the Israeli team currently examining locations.
A few hours after the ceremony in Amman, a parallel opening was held in Tel Aviv for the Jordanian Embassy, which will be located temporarily at the Dan Hotel there.
Israel and Jordan officially declared the establishment of diplomatic relations on Nov. 27. The two countries signed their historic peace accord on Oct. 26.
Yoav Biran, the Foreign Ministry’s deputy director-general for Peace Matters, called the inauguration of the embassy another “bridge of peace, of friendship and of cooperation” between the two countries.
Israel has yet to name its ambassador to Jordan, but the appointment is expected by the end of the month. Until then, Ya’acov Rosen, head of the Jordanian desk at the Foreign Ministry, will oversee the embassy’s operations.
On the Jordanian side, Omar Rifai, who took part in the Israeli-Jordanian peace talks and who is an adviser to Jordan’s Crown Prince Hassan, will head the embassy until the already appointed ambassador, Marwan Muashar, arrives in Tel Aviv.
Meanwhile, officials for the two countries said that serious progress was being made in talks regarding joint economic projects.
Among the projects being discussed is a proposed “Peace Valley” resort area in the Dead Sea region.
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