USA

Thank you, Karen.

You know, this is one event I wish I wasn’t at.

I wish there was no need for UNRWA... I wish there was no anniversary to mark…and I wish that there were not 4.6 million Palestinian refugees in need of humanitarian aid.

But, you and I know, the reality is very different.

Theirs is a life interrupted...a life half lived.

Hours wasted at checkpoints… …another work day lost…another pay cheque cancelled.

Worried about what the family will eat… weighing up how far food will stretch…praying for an aid parcel.

Colleen McEdwards: Well, Jordan's Queen Rania is without question a different sort of sovereign, she's young, well educated, she chairs non-governmental organizations, and she travels the world, talking about education and the rights of women and children.

I had a chance to talk to her while she was in Los Angeles. We discussed her work, the war in Iraq, and her recent visit to an L.A. high school.

Hello everyone. I’m sorry I can’t be with you, but I’m pleased to join you from Jordan, and support this conference which places caring, kindness, and kids at the core of all it is and all it aims to do.

Someone once told me that those who bring sunshine to the lives of others, cannot keep it from themselves. If that is true, then Seattle must be shining bright this morning.

And I can’t think of a better season than Spring time for so many ‘seeds of compassion’ to gather… grow…and take flight on the wind.

(Office of Her Majesty – Press Department – New York) - Her Majesty Queen Rania Al-Abdullah called for sustained cross-cultural dialogue, including a greater awareness of Islam by the West, and warned of the dangers of a bi-polar view of the world.

On a 4-day working visit to the United States with His Majesty King Abdullah, the Queen's call for sustained communication and dialogue was made at the opening plenary of the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in New York, as well as at a luncheon held in Washington, DC with professional women from different sectors.

(Office of Her Majesty – Press Department – Washington, D.C.) - Her Majesty Queen Rania met with US First Lady Laura Bush at the White House to discuss areas of common interest and exchange views on developments--on the humanitarian level--related to the September 11 attacks on the United States.

Her Majesty, on a working visit to the United States, was accompanying His Majesty King Abdullah. Following her meeting at the White House, Queen Rania visited the headquarters of the American Red Cross in Washington, DC, where she met with its President and CEO, Dr. Bernadine Healy.

(Royal Hashemite Court – Media & Communication Directorate – Washington, D.C.) - His Majesty King Abdullah II emphasised that achieving peace in the Middle East needs the engagement of parties in negotiations on clearly outlined bases and timeframes, adding that unilateral measures have failed to resolve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. 

(Office of Her Majesty – Press Department – New York) - Before concluding her trip to the United States, Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah lent her continued support as (RED) Co-founder Bobby Shriver unveiled (RED)'s newest partnership with Hallmark Cards, Inc at a Hallmark Gold Crown store in New York. Eight percent of Hallmark (PRODUCT) RED net wholesale sales will go to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

(Office of Her Majesty, Press Department- New York) Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah, on Thursday, commended the efforts of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, UNRWA, at the inauguration ceremony commemorating the agency’s 60th anniversary.

“UNRWA’s presence reminds the Palestinian people that they are not alone; that in their darkest hours, an international aid agency stands by their side,” said Her Majesty.

(Office of Her Majesty, Press Department- New York) Global development challenges such as inequity in education, youth unemployment and women’s empowerment were at the core of Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah’s remarks during one of the sessions of the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) meeting, on Thursday.

Participating in a panel discussion, deliberating on what it takes to meet the 2015 Education for All deadline, Queen Rania and other panelists put forth a number of solutions aimed at encouraging countries, donors and partners to fulfill their aid pledges.

(Office of Her Majesty, Press Department - Dearborn) Her Majesty Queen Rania called on Arab-Americans to act “as active agents of cooperation” between Arab and Western cultures.

Queen Rania stressed that as the Arab world stands at a vital crossroads we need to find ways to channel emotions into constructive action “as the impetus for peace, democracy and human development has never been greater…and at the same time the price of failure has probably never been higher.”