Tag:

Hashemites

Change in Jordan, Easy, Cheap and Good for Everyone

by Mudar Zahran October 3, 2017

written by Mudar Zahran

Despite Israel’s desire to protect the Hashemite regime, and stay out of messy Arab internal politics, it is now public knowledge that the Israeli intelligence establishment believes that Jordan’s king’s fall is imminent, and Israeli officials have been whispering that in private for a while, desperately discussing ways to save king and keep him in power. Nonetheless, a well-calculated, carefully-ushered and engineered change in Jordan could pose a huge opportunity for US, Israel, our Jordanian people, and all of those who want peace.

No, we’re not seeking a total regime change in Jordan, in which the state itself is turned into nothingness, leaving a gap for Islamists to jump in and take over. That was Obama’s style at best, because Obama did not know better, or at worst, because he wanted the Islamists to take over.

The change we desire for Jordan will be simple: Seeing the already irrelevant king leave by a small and peaceful revolution that is protected by the army. The US does not and need not interfere, this will be an internal Jordanian affair. All the US should do is offer the king a safe exit while Jordan’s army and strong intelligence keep the country intact and the Islamists at bay. This was the case when Egyptians took to the streets against the Muslim Brotherhood, deposed Morsi and the army protected the people, and the outcome: Serendipity, and more secular and peaceful Egypt, under a strong and wonderful man, President Sisi. Worth-noting here, that Jordan’s king does not control the army or Jordan’s intelligence; therefore, he will leave in peace, the US, on the other hand, finances, trains and influences our army and intelligence and could help both secular and patriotic organizations to usher in a moderate interim government for Jordan.

The US and the region could obtain breakthrough advantages from change in Jordan. The first is destroying Jordan’s Muslim Brotherhood. (MB). Jordan’s MB gets its power from the regime – so if the regime falls, the MB falls. Jordan’s own government believes this. This is important because Jordan’s MB is not just another terror group. The global MB HQ is based in Amman and controls Hamas and the global MB as well, especially Qatar’s. The US intelligence agencies are aware of this fact. If Jordan’s army -under US help and guidance- ushers in a secular anti-MB leader (like Egypt’s Sisi), that would be a major blow to the MB and the Western globalists forces who support them such as Soros.

The second advantage is ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict; if a Palestinian-Jordanian leader becomes the head of Jordan’s interim government, and then Jordan’s president; this means that Jordanians from all backgrounds will have a home, and that 2.1 million Palestinians in Israel, all holding Jordanian passports, could find a place to call their state.

Next, once the king is out and his theft of public money stops, Jordan will become economically prosperous and attractive for Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, Syria, and the West Bank itself. Meanwhile, Israel and the US should continue to apply pressure on the corrupt and terroristic Palestinian Authority, gradually putting them out of the business of killing our people, Israelis, and even other PLO figures. Defusing the Israeli-Palestinian conflict will be major blow to the globalists who have blackmailed the world for decades with it, and who remain united against President Trump and his advisor, Jared Kushner’s, effort to usher in real peace.

Another advantage is that a successful regime change in Jordan will put the region’s radical regimes on notice, Qatar for example. Those will need to end their hostility to Israel and to stop promoting radical Islamism, otherwise face the same music King Abdullah has. This also shall empower moderate regimes, and champions of change, such as the very pragmatic Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Ben Salman, and UAE’s Crown Prince, Mohammad Ben Zayed.

America’s deep and positive influence of Jordan’s army and security agencies means the country will remain safe during the transition, and so will its borders with Israel. In fact, it is this influence that keeps Jordan’s borders with Israel safe, and not the absentee landlord king who spends most of his time in Europe, with documented travel of 30 percent of the year, not counting his year-long private vacations. Basically, he is irrelevant to everything and anything in Jordan.

One a new interim leadership is in power, the first thing it should do is banning all Islamist groups, just like Sisi of Egypt did, and this will mean they won’t even have a chance of running for any public office, let alone for president.

Today, such positive change in Jordan will be embraced by several Arab governments who no-longer see Israel as an enemy and in fact would love to see an end to the expensive and obstructive conflict.

This sought change is the very reason my political party and I are proudly taking part in the Jordan Option Conference in Jerusalem in October.

The sweet music of change is playing loud, and we all better be listening.

Originally published in the Jewish Press.

October 3, 2017 0 comments

Politics

Is Turkey Bank Rolling the Clashes Over the Temple Mount?

by Micha Gefen July 24, 2017

written by Micha Gefen

For days, the Palestinian Arabs have been rioting over what is a simple security precaution involving metal detectors at all entrances to the Temple Mount. Metal detectors have long been installed at the Western Wall and at the entrance to the Temple Mount permited for Jews and tourists.

With the murder of two Druze policemen nearly ten days ago the government made a simple decision to install metal detectors at all the entrances. Since that decision the Palestinian Arab population in Jerusalem has rioted, with Abbas not only continuing to incite violence, but going as far as breaking off security coordination with Israel.

“Relations with Israel are frozen at all levels until Israel announces that it is revoking its steps against the Palestinian people as a whole and against Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa mosque in particular,” Abbas said in a brief televised speech after a meeting with his aides.

Surprisingly enough many Arab countries have remained neutral on the issue. It is clear the Saudis would like nothing more than to see the Hashemite control over the mount be scaled back as they want to push back on Jordan for their partnership with the Qatar supported Muslim Brotherhood.

Sensing a Saudi move to push them off of the Temple Mount, Jordan agreed to meet Israel over the Temple Mount wthout the Palestinian Authority. The main reason behind the PA’s exclusion, was Abbas’ assistance that Turkey become involved.

Israel HaYom reported:

“Israel and Jordan are planning to form a joint committee to devise security arrangements on the Temple Mount that would be acceptable to all sides.”

The report continued:

“The committee will deal with a wide range of issues beyond the metal detectors installed at the entrances to the compound. Among these is the implementation of an arrangement Jordan and Israel agreed upon previously to install a closed circuit security camera system in sections of the Temple Mount complex. The arrangement has not yet been implemented because the Waqf has yet to begin the installation stipulated in the arrangement.”

“A senior Palestinian official in Ramallah confirmed these reports. He said that in response to Jordan’s snub, Abbas called for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to take part in the talks to resolve the crisis. This in turn angered the Jordanian king and his supporters, the official said, as they view the Jordanian royal family as the sole custodians Muslim holy sites in Jerusalem.”

Turkey has been itching to gain a foothold in Jerusalem for over a year as part of Erdogan’s dream of rebuilding the Ottoman empire. He has urged thousands of Muslims to descend on the Jerusalem ascent the Temple Mount in order to “protect it.”

In connection to the most recent tension, Erdogan said the following Israel’s President Reuven Rivlin:

“Within the framework of freedom of religion and worship there can be no impediment for Muslims” entering the holy site, the Anadolu news agency quoted Erdogan as telling Rivlin.

“Given the importance that Haram al-Sharif carries for the whole Islamic world, the metal detectors put in place by Israel should be removed in the shortest possible time and an end put to the tension,” Erdogan added.

With Turkey and Qatar getting pushed out of Gaza by the UAE and Egypt, the most natural move is to start a rumble over the Temple Mount. Jordan has acted cautiously and stepped back from the brink by reaching out to Israel. With a fading Abbas getting bankrolled by Turkey, the riots are sure to continue unless Jordan can reach a true compromise with Israel.

July 24, 2017 0 comments

Politics Radical Islam

Jordan, the Saudi Family, and the Return of Israel to the Temple Mount

by David Mark July 18, 2017

written by David Mark

Reports in Arab media suggest that the Saudi Arabian government has been directly involved in trying to calm tensions on the Temple Mount. In fact a delegation of Saudi officials were invited to see for themselves the status quo is still being enforced on the Temple Mount, which is Israel’s holiest site.

So who is stirring up the tensions?

The current round of conflict on the Temple Mount was started when armed terrorists came from the mount and shot and killed two Israeli policemen near the Lion Gate. This is the first terror attack emanating from the Temple Mount since Israel liberated it 50 years ago. In reaction, Prime Minister Netanyahu ordered a full scale investigtion into the incident and placed metal detectors at each entrance to the complex. Until then only Jews and tourists had to be checked, Muslims could roam freely and even picnic and play soccer there.

Metal Detectors in place at the entance to the Temple Mount. wakf closed the door in protest.

This small act of sovereignty by Israel, one that is perfectly justified, has now triggered riots in and around the Temple Mount entrances. Although the Wakf and PA President Abbas have encouraged the rioters, it is in fact Jordan who has instigated the violent clashes at the entrances.

Why is Jordan Inciting Violence on the Temple Mount?

To understand the current conflict over the Temple Mount, it is important to look back at British colonial aspirations in the Middle East after the first World War. The Hashemite family who rules what is today Jordan comes from a the Hashemite family who ruled in Mecca for nearly one thousand years until they were overthrown by the Saudi family in 1925.

The current Hashemite dynasty was founded by Hussein ibn Ali, who was appointed as Sharif and Emir of Mecca by Sultan Abdul Hamid IIin 1908. In 1916 he was proclaimed King of the Arab Lands after initiating the Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire.

With the help of the British, his sons Abdullah and Faisal assumed the thrones of Jordan and Iraq in 1921. In 1925 the Saudi family overthrew Hussein ibn Ali as Sharif and assumed leadership. In 1958 his Hussein ibn Ali’s son Faisal was deposed in a bloody coup as the King of Iraq.

With only one Kingdom left and no power in their historic home of Mecca, the Hashemites, who sided with Britain and relied on them to establish their rule require a foothold on the Temple Mount in order to lay claim to leadership in the Arab world.

They Will Not Go Quietly

The Hashemites will do whatever is necessary to force the Israeli government to take away the metal detectors from the entrances of the Temple Mount. The rioting is part of the pressure, but the incitement also deflects growing dissatisfaction with the King and his family.

The self imposed “exile from the mount” over the metal detectors is not working to sway world opinion, which is growing tired over continuous tantrums by the Hashemite backed Arab street.

Arabs protesting by the entrance to the Temple Mount near the Lions Gate.

The Saudis, who are looking to pivot towards Israel have never trusted Jordan. Afterall, the Jordanian King allows the Muslim Brotherhood to have a base of operations in Amman as well as playing both sides by accepting funding from Qatar as well as . More than that, in the intra-Arab competiton for rulership, the Saudi would rather not have the Hashemites control access to the Temple Mount. So in a bizarre twist of fate, it is the Saudis, who not only remained quiet during the latest flare up, but it will be their delegation who will determine that it is in fact Jordan who is inciting.

Metal Detectors Return the Temple Mount to the Heart of Zionism

With all the tumult in the Jewish world over the Western Wall, which is the last retaining wall of the Temple Mount comlex, it is in fact the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock which encompasses the holiest site in Judaism. The metal detectators now placed at the entrance to the Temple Mount, may appear to be a small and sensible act, but it is this act that appears to have begun a series of events that may in fact return the Temple Mount to Jewish hands and place it once again where it should in the hearts and minds of the Nation of Israel and at the forefront of the Zionist enterprise.

Entrance to the Temple Mount by the Lions Gate now heavily guarded with metal detectors.

Arab media helping to fan flames of hatred in the Arab world by reporting on the security forces.

July 18, 2017 1 comment