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Muhammad Hamed / Reuters
Jordanian gendarmerie police stand guard to separate pro-government supporters from anti-government protesters Tuesday.
Demonstrations and calls for general strikes hit key U.S. ally Jordan after the country’s prime minister added to the country’s economic problems by announcing price hikes for gas and other fuel.
Abdullah Ensour's announcement on state television Tuesday cited a need to offset $5 billion in state losses by increasing fuel costs.
It sparked protests in the capital, Amman, and at least 12 other cities across Jordan.
The protesters, spanning an array of different political groups, also targeted King Abdullah II -- a rare public display against the monarch.
Criticizing the king in public is forbidden in Jordan and is punishable by up to three years in jail.
"Revolution, revolution, it is a popular revolution," chanted about 2,000 in an impromptu demonstration at a main Amman square, housing the Interior Ministry and other vital government departments.
"Freedom is from God, in spite of you, Abdullah," they shouted.
Muhammad Hamed / Reuters
Protesters rally Tuesday following an announcement that Jordan would raise fuel prices.
Tough test for regime
Cars jammed gas stations to stock up on fuel before the price hike takes effect on Wednesday.
The protests looked set to escalate toward the end of the week, setting a tough test for Jordan’s regime, although military suppression tactics - commonly used in Egypt and elsewhere – are highly unusual.
The country has traditionally been one of the most stable in the Middle East, despite its position at the fulcrum of the region’s deepest conflicts in recent years. Its longest border, with Israel, has been peaceful since a 1993 treaty.
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Although a relatively wealthy country, Jordan lacks natural resources and has been stretched economically by decades of refugees from neighboring conflicts, who have pushed up demand for real estate and commodities.
Ensour, the prime minister, said a type of fuel used in public transport will rise in price by 14 percent, while kerosene oil used for household heating will go up by 28 percent.
Cooking gas will jump 54 percent, he said. Many low-income Jordanians use the gas for heating.
Pipeline repeatedly blown up
Disruptions in cheap Egyptian gas shipments cost Jordan an extra $7 million a day, the government said, pushing the budget deficit to a record high of nearly $3 billion this year.
The pipeline that carries Egyptian natural gas to Israel and Jordan has been blown up more than a dozen times over the past year by militants in Egypt's Sinai desert, halting shipments. Jordan has switched to the more expensive fuel oil to generate electricity.
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In some cities in Jordan's south, inhabited by tribal Bedouins who are traditional supporters of the king, hundreds of protesters took to the streets to chant slogans calling for the ouster of the prime minister, but also criticizing the king.
In Mazar, dozens of protesters burned down the main court building after stealing documents, said Yazan Naanah, a resident who said he saw the arson but did not take part in the protest.
Further south in Maan, a hotbed for Jordanian Muslim militants, 500 protesters blocked the streets, burning tires and throwing stones at riot police, who were firing tear gas, a city official said, insisting on anonymity because he is not allowed to make press statements. He said there were no immediate reports of injuries.
NBC's Ayman Mohyeldin and Reuters contributed to this report.
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Leave a Comment:
... Here we go again with another leg of the "Despot Derby".
"country’s economic problems by announcing price hikes for gas and other fuel. Abdullah Ensour's announcement on state television Tuesday cited a need to offset $5 billion in state losses by increasing fuel costs."
The king of all despot derby is the head of House of Saud. House of Saud consists of a megalomaniac, despotic and bigoted ruler and highly corrupt, despotic, bigoted seventh century mindset 5000 princes and princesses.
The Sunni Saudi seventh century barbarians and beasts and co along with oil companies, mad nut cases like Netanyahus and their lobbyists are responsible for high oil price manipulations. Earlier it was Iraqi wars and now it is sanctions on Iranian oil.
Jordan's case is the state of affairs in oil importing nations due to high oil price manipulations by imposing sanctions on Iranian oil!
The Isalmic nazi type terrorists with their fascist force down the throat sharia jihad are now trying to undermine Jordan.The King knows what to do.Fascist sharia beasts must be imprisoned or shot if they resist.Go get them King of Jordan!
By what standard is Jordan considered a "relatively wealthy country"? The abject poverty of the masses is what's driving these recent protests and riots.
I can't imagine this "king" will last much longer. The inevitable will happen and he will be overthrown in favor of an islamist government. So much fro propping up puppet regimes .... Let it happen already !!!!
King Abdullah is about as good as kings get, and this is a sad story. As usual, the protestors in Islam-land cannot face even the realities which an educated 10-year-old could figure out.
Maybe Allah should provide free fuel? And since Allah and Jehovah are the same god, perhaps it is time for the USA to cut off the 4 to 6 billion dollars we spend each year on God's "chosen people" and let The Lord Himself protect them. Take away their American credit card. Jehovah and Moses led them to their "homeland" in the first place and helped them kill everything in their path to claim that "promised land". It's God's job to look after the sons of genocide, not ours.
It is high time to find substitutes for oil instead of dancing to the tunes set by oil producing ME nations!
Allah and Jehovah are not the same God. The God of Bible is different from god of Quran. The God of Bible did command the Israelite to annihilate the native population of Canaan to prevent the pagan worship permeate the newly arrived Hebrew people. It was for one time. The Hebrews did not accomplish and they always had enemies within their borders awaiting for the right time to annihilate the Hebrews.
After Jesus came into picture, no killing was permitted. Love your neighbor is the clarion call of the God of Bible.
ON the other hand god of Quran is demanding the blood of all people who refuse to accept him as the lord of their lives.
If you want to know the difference read the Bible as well as the Quran. I did and I am sure the Bible is easy to read and is a better book than Quran.
@John, I agree with your first part but cannot, repeat, cannot understand the rant in the second part of our comment.
Jordan is a extremely free country in the Middle East (freer than Israel in many instances) and the people there know it. Should they be angry over planned gas hikes? Of course. But then we get pretty outraged that gas isn't a buck a gallon. It's definitely not Jordan's, nor the king's, fault that fools keep blowing up the pipeline from Egypt. And King Abdulla is a helluva lot better than the King in Saudi Arabia.
Frankly to invoke a 'God' in this or an 'Allah' is foolish at best. Neither can keep prices from rising any more than they can make prices fall. Frankly, I leave any diety out of conversatio since no diety, which may or may not exist, can do much of anything, unless that diety can make someone put someting in the collection plate, aother doubtfull situation.
This protest is about prices, not a diety, so keep on track in your comments, please.
All Kings, especially of the ME nations, should be thrown out to the deserts. Take it or leave it: it is going to happen in 21st century!
Jordan's problems are a familiar story of depending too much on oil!
ME is not our business. Just keep miles away. REMOVE SANCTIONS ON IRANIAN OIL!
Just like before each Iraqi wars, autocratic, highly corrupt and despotic bigoted Sunni Sunni Saudi, UAE, Qatar, Kuwaiti and Sunni oil rich nations are stage managing their dances and actions through oil companies, extremist Jewish lobbys and their puppets in the US, Britain, EU and other nations on Syria and Iran.
In Syria, Syrian rebels are backed by a-Qaida and MB.
In Egypt, Islamic fundamentalist Morsi is a front cover for the Sunni Islamic extremist Salaffi, MB and others.
With sanctions on Iranian oil, oil prices which was around $40 in 2009 has crossed $110 now.
If Iraqi wars gave us PIIGS, there will more nations added to PIIGS.
IRAQ WARS
Net results of Saudi, Kuwait, UAE, oil companies and their lobbyists directed 1991 and 2003 Iraqi wars are
WINNERS
1. Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, UAE and other rich ME sharks became richer by manipulating oil prices too high.
2. Oil companies and their lobbyists also benefitted. Oil prices, which were hardly $30 a barrel before 1991, shot up to $140 a barrel.
3. Since 2003, future traders, rating agencies, Wall Street and oil companies and their lobbyists transferred five trillion dollars from oil importing countries to oil exporting nations.
4. Rich Sunni ME sharks (Saudi Arabia in particular) funded Salaffi and Wahhabi mosques and Islamic radicals and terrorists all over the world. These Sunni Islamic radicals and terrorists are rampaging all over the world. World’s 80 percent of problems are due to them.
LOSERS
1. General US and European nations’ public. There have been high unemployment, cut in welfare measures, housing market collapse and more miseries. Since 2001, US spent three trillion dollars on Iraq and Afghan wars. Did the Saudis and co foot the bill?
2. Poor soldiers killed and injured and their families. In Iraq and Afghan wars 6300 soldiers were killed and 40000 injured.
3. High budget deficits and heavier borrowing. Many nations (PIIGS) and people are on line to bankruptcy!
4. Iraq will plunge into bloody sectarian civil wars leading to the creation of Shiastan, Sunnistan and Kurdistan. Here the losses are of Iraqis.
The problem Jonathon.is the Muslim countries or their terrorist groups don´t let the rest of us alone. Islam is a violent, intolerant and often murderous ideology.It´s like in the 1930's saying don´t bother the nazi in Germany.But when they set out to conquer all of Europe,they had to be defeated.With Islam expansionism and conquest they too have to be defeated.THis is too obvious and too much common sense. Elemetary,Watson .Elementary the whole world !
bart martin: For this reason, I strongly advocate that we should not decide the winners in Shiites vs Sunni battles.
Ponder back: was there any need to save Kuwaiti, Sunni Saudi and other Sunni barbaric and beastly bigoted rulers from Saddam?
We lost heavily in the process. Ironically, bigoted and despotic Sunni Saudis and their Sunni hater and killer gangs became stronger!
So let Shiites, Sunnis and other Islamic sect people kill each other.
Our jobs will be less difficult to take care of the remaining Islamic haters and killers!
So no roles in Syria and Iran!
I was in Jordan in March of this year. It is a country without oil. However, it has other potential. Its northern part is more fertile. Southern part is desert. It has five main tribes of which one is Christian. Most intellectuals come from that Christian tribe, They are mainly concentrated near Madabah, the only Christian city in Jordan.
Jordanians to whom I had contacts told me that they feared Islamic fanaticism is growing as the economy is not moving. It is not that Jordanians were starving or unemployed but they want a standard of living equal to that of Europeans. It can't be achieved over night.
Islamists move is and promise paradise if Islam becomes the only religion of the land. The Arabs from West Bank who migrated during the wars are not given citizenship and they are the prime movers in Islamization of Jordan. They think Islam can deliver Israel into their hands. This was the promise of Muslim Brotherhood to Egyptians.
Islam is driving the Arabs to suicide. Arabs are going to end up as losers. It is not the Arabs mistake but the religion they subscribe.
Islam promises them heaven but delivers hell!
Islam's own Allah has predicted that Islam will be wiped out soon!
Any religiious/ideological extremism is going to bring end of religion/ideology sooner or later.
More extremism means quicker death.
Communism is the latest example. They too were bragging that they cover more than half the population and areas of the world and so on!
Where are the commies and communism?
I hope that the U.S. is watching this closely for King Abdullah II is the ONLY westernized leader in the Middle East. He struggles each day to keep peace among his own people in balancing both Arab and western values at the same time. While he tries to keep out all of the corruption going on in other Arab countries out of his country, he tries to get other Arab leaders to help stabilize the region. If Jordan falls so will Saudi Arabia in the hands of terrorist.
The Palestinian Arabs of Jordan are the problem...They are the ones who, once again, want to overthrow the Jordanian thrown. They tried it in the 1970s and then, King Hussein sent his troops in a civil war to fight and defeated the PLO and camp followers, know as," Black September." That saved Jordan from the Islama-fanatics until now. Abdullah is not as smart as his father...his uncle should have been appointed king, far more politically savvy and a statesman. I'm afraid this king is doomed to a repeat and become another Egypt...with the Muslim Brotherhood smelling blood in the water. Shame...for the ME and the free world.
PS: What a dangerous, sick neighborhood for Israel to live in, now becoming surrounded by fanatics ...like the Dark Ages all over again...
The Palestinians of Jordan represent the majority in Jordan. They are discriminated against. How would anyone in those shoes feel? They are not the problem. Oppression and discrimination under the brutal regime are the problems.
You are correct that Abdullah is not as smart as his father, but the uncharismatic uncle with the unstable wife as king and queen would have been a disaster for Jordan. Even people who have worked for Hassan for decades say as much in private conversations. Unfortunately, Hussein did not plan well for his succession. He didn't groom any of his sons to succeed him, nor did he remove Hassan from his crown prince job in a way that was respectful to the regime itself. And, so, the country is left with a leadership void that is easily exploited by western powers and wealthy gulf sheikhs.
In 21st, how long will these kings and successors survive?