Jordan jails king's fugitive uncle for corruption

A Jordanian court today sentenced a fugitive uncle of King Abdullah II to 37.5 years in jail with hard labour and a massive fine on two charges of abuse of office, a judicial official said.
The court ordered Walid Kurdi, who was tried in absentia, to pay a USD 401 million fine, the official told AFP.
Kurdi is married to Princess Basma, sister of Abdullah's father, the late king Hussein.
He is the former CEO of the Jordan Phosphate Mines Co, one of the world's largest suppliers.
"Kurdi, who is on the run now in Britain, was convicted of abuse of office in two cases related to sales and shipping deals, estimated at around 31 million dinars," the official said without elaborating.

In January, the court ordered Kurdi's assets frozen on suspicion of corruption.
Last year, a court sentenced former spy chief Mohammed Dahabi to 13 years in jail with hard labour and ordered him to pay a USD 29-million fine after convicting of corruption.
Fighting corruption is one of the main challenges identified by the king to meet demands of Jordanians for sweeping reforms.