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Pharmacists syndicate member files complaint over ‘punch’ by ministry official

By Dana Al Emam - Mar 05,2015 - Last updated at Mar 05,2015

AMMAN — A unionist on Thursday filed a legal complaint against a Health Ministry official over an alleged assault during a meeting at the Jordan Pharmacists Association (JPhA).

The dispute took place on Wednesday evening during a meeting to settle a previous misunderstanding between the two men, when one “provoked” the other, which caused the other to reportedly assault him, JPhA President Ahmad Issa told The Jordan Times.

“It is a disgraceful incident that we are trying to resolve,” he said, adding that the dispute “did not necessitate” using violence.

In phone interviews with The Jordan Times on Thursday, the two men — JPhA Secretary Ahmad Abu Ghanimeh and Health Ministry consultant Jamal Afaneh — gave their own accounts of the incident. 

Abu Ghanimeh said he was taken to a private hospital after the incident as he received a “punch on the right cheek” and his high blood pressure went up. The hospital issued a medical report that he used on Thursday to file the complaint against Afaneh.

Noting that he exercised his “legal right” in filing the complaint, the JPhA secretary said he was “surprised” by the hit, which caused him to “fall to the floor”.

“It is a personal insult as well as a humiliation to my position in the association,” he said, denying that he provoked Afaneh.

On the other hand, Afaneh said he “pushed” Abu Ghanimeh and did not punch him, in response to “intense verbal insults”.

He explained that the dispute was over a meeting with the media for the first conference of public sector pharmacists, a comprehensive event that involves pharmacists working in all sectors. 

“The conference was my idea and will be held by collective efforts of public sector pharmacists, a matter that Abu Ghanimeh wants to claim as an initiative by the association’s council,” Afaneh said.

He added that he wanted to leave the meeting due to the insults he received but Abu Ghanimeh kept his car keys to prevent him from leaving the room, an accusation the JPhA secretary denies.

Although Issa was in the same room, he said he cannot say for certain whether Afaneh punched Abu Ghanimeh or pushed him, as it “happened in a second”.

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