John Kerry is to set off on a trip to Jordan and Saudi Arabia as part of efforts to build an international coalition to counter Islamic State militants.
The UN General Assembly Monday approved the nomination of Jordan's Prince Zeid al-Hussein as the next human rights chief, making him the first Muslim and Arab to hold the post.
Pope Francis arrives in Jordan Saturday at the start of a Middle East tour aiming to boost ties with Muslims and Jews as well as easing an age-old rift within Christianity itself.
The Jordanian ambassador to Libya, Fawaz Aitan, who was kidnapped in Tripoli last month, has been freed, state television in the North African country said on Tuesday.
Representatives of Israel, Jordan and the Palestinians will on Monday sign a "historic" agreement to link the Red Sea with the shrinking Dead Sea, an Israeli minister said.
International aid agency Oxfam on Tuesday launched a "12 Days of Giving" appeal to help destitute Syrian refugee families in Jordan and Lebanon survive the region's harsh winter months.
Jordan's plan to build its first nuclear plant with Russian help has stirred fresh fears and suspicions as experts called for the "dangerous" and "illogical" project to be abandoned.
Jordan on Sunday vowed "credibility and transparency" in dealing with radical Islamist cleric Abu Qatada after Britain deported him to Amman to face terror charges.
International rights groups and media freedom defenders expressed concern on Wednesday about a recent Jordanian government decision to block unlicensed local news websites saying it was a censorship attempt.
King Abdullah II vowed Sunday to protect Jordan from the war in Syria, after the United States announced its warplanes and missiles will remain in the kingdom at the end of military exercises.
Jordan, already straining from hosting hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees, is increasingly feeling the heat from its own citizens who are fed up with the growing influx.
Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas signed a deal with King Abdullah II on Sunday confirming Jordan's historic role as custodian of the holy sites in Jerusalem.
Seen by some as emblematic of the Mediterranean landscape and cuisine, the olive tree in fact has its domesticated roots in Kurdish regions, said a study Wednesday that seeks to settle an age-old debate.
Iraq will close its border with Jordan on Wednesday due to anti-government protests that have blocked the main highway linking the two countries, a military official said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held talks with Jordan's King Abdullah II in Amman recently to discuss violence in Syria and the country's chemical weapons stock.
Iraq and Jordan agreed on Monday to extend an oil pipeline to the Red Sea city of Aqaba for the export of Iraqi crude, Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki said after a fleeting visit to Amman.