AMMAN, Dec 1 (AFP) - The HIV/AIDS virus has claimed 313 victims in Jordan, including 129 Jordanians, since 1986, Health Minister Walid Maani said in a statement published by the press on Sunday to mark World AIDS Day.

Since the killer virus first appeared in the kingdom 16 years ago, 184 non-Jordanians were also infected and have been deported from the country, the minister said.

According to the health ministry, 50.8 percent cases were contracted through sexual contact, 23.3 percent through contaminated blood transfusions and 4.2 percent through intravenous drug use, Petra news agency reported.

Around 1.6 percent of the cases were children infected through their mothers while 20.1 percent were for unknown reasons, the agency said.

These figures, officials insist, indicated that Jordan is considered one of the countries least affected by AIDS which has hit an estimated 42 million people worldwide.

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