Turkish Anadolu Agency: Jordan faces pressures due to 'Deal of the Century'

Jordan

Published: 2019-04-22 13:46

Last Updated: 2024-04-19 02:47


Turkish Anadolu Agency: Jordan faces pressures due to 'Deal of the Century'
Turkish Anadolu Agency: Jordan faces pressures due to 'Deal of the Century'

The Turkish Anadolu Agency published a detailed analysis of Jordan's position on the “Deal of the century,” which the US administration intends to put forward in the coming weeks, under the title "Jordan against the ‘Deal of the Century,’ a struggle or response to Pressure?”

The report also analyzes the media leaks that talk about the “imposed” Jordanian role on participating in the enforcement of the "Deal of the Century," which is completely rejected by Amman in toto.

According to the report, the indicators on the "Deal of the Century" confirm that Jordan is steadfast in its position and that it will resist the pressure exerted on it.

The report said that the deal has its negative consequences on the demographic composition of Jordan if it included naturalizing of Palestinians, imposing a confederation or taking Jordan as an alternative homeland.

The report added that the political community is worried that the declining Jordanian economy and the reduction of US and Gulf aid would lead Amman to accept aid under conditions to pass the “Deal of the Century.”

It was clear that the Middle East crisis had "partially" diverted its attention from the Palestinian cause, especially after the Arab Spring revolutions, the rise in social and political crises, and the preoccupation of concerned Arab countries with other issues than Palestine that had been the "central issue,” the report said.

The Occupation Government is trying to exploit the prevailing conditions in the region, the deteriorating Arab political, and financial support for Palestinians to pressure on the Palestinian Authority (PA) to accept the "Deal of the Century,” after signs of normalization between some countries of the MENA region and Tel Aviv, and a somewhat partnership facing Iranian threats.

Since 1924, the Hashemite dynasty has been the sole guardian of the Islamic and Christian holy sites in occupied Jerusalem. It maintained this role even after the 1967 Arab-Israeli war and the occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem and continued to exist even after the disengagement from the West Bank, up until 1994 when Jordan concluded a peace treaty with Tel Aviv under which the latter recognized the Hashemite Custodianship over the holy sites.

The Executive and Legislative Institutions of the State are united with the opinion of the Jordanian society in supporting the continuation of the "Hashemite Guardianship over the Islamic and Christian sanctities in Jerusalem,” the positions of King Abdullah II, which rejects the liquidation of the Palestinian cause, and the passing of the "Deal of the Century" on the two-state solution.

Under the latter circumstances, Jordan is trying to push away doubts about its acceptance of the "Deal of the Century,” in its steadfast position on Jerusalem, Palestine, and sanctities, which was expressed by King Abdullah II as a "historic duty".

The report said that His Majesty King Abdullah II did not speak about what external entities put pressure on him personally or on the Kingdom; however, the opinions of experts, analysts and media leaks tend to accept the theory of the Gulf countries, based on the nature of its relations with the US administration, and senior White House advisor Jared Kushner who is in charge with the “Deal of the Century,” and is making sure it gets implemented.

The report mentions that Jordan is under American pressure in the military and financial aid, to push it into accepting the passage of the "Deal of the Century,” resettling Palestinians on Jordanian territories, and abandoning of the Hashemite Guardianship on the Islamic and Christian sanctities in Jerusalem.

Any US peace initiative between Tel Aviv and Palestinians would have direct repercussions on Jordan, as there are hundreds of thousands of Palestinian refugees, who are registered with the United Nations (UN), live in Jordan , and there is also a "significant" percentage of Jordanians that are of Palestinian origin, in addition to the situation of the Holy Places in accordance with the peace treaty In 1994.

According to the report, some Hebrew media reported that the "Deal of the Century" could affect the Hashemite Guardianship over the holy places, which Jordanians view as an "existential threat" to the Kingdom and an attempt to liquidate the Palestinian cause at the expense of Jordan, despite the assurances of King Abdullah II, that he “will not give in any way to the pressure exerted on him.”

Haaretz Hebrew newspaper published some leaks about some sections of the "Deal of the Century", that includes the transference of the Hashemite Custodianship over the holy sites from Jordan to other countries such as Saudi Arabia and Morocco.

Jordanian officials said that this is considered a red line and that His Majesty King Abdullah II "will not relinquish custody over holy sites."

His Majesty stresses Jordan's firm position on the achievement of peace, which must be based on international resolutions and on the basis of the establishment of two states side by side, Tel Aviv and Palestine on the borders of June 4, 1967, with a just solution for the Palestinian refugees in the world.

In the "Deal of the Century", Jordanians see an existential threat to the Palestinian cause and the occupation’s attempt with US complicity to seize Jerusalem, the Jordan River Valley and the occupied Palestinian territories outside the lines of June 4, 1967.

It is also feared that the Palestinian community will be deprived of their right to establish their independent state in accordance with the Arab Peace Initiative. In other words, accepting the "Deal of the Century" will ultimately mean the formal elimination by Washington and Tel Aviv of the Palestinian right to establish an independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital.

The PA refuses to discuss with the United States any peace initiative with the occupation due to the declaration of US President Donald Trump of Jerusalem as the capital of the Israeli occupation on the end of 2017.

"There are no indications that Jordan will make concessions on its firm position or accept the passage of the “Deal of the Century,” the report said.